The Worst Witch A Hidden World
by annasan1100
Summary: Sixteen-year-old Samantha Gilbert was the wild child of the family. If there was trouble she was involved, but after her parents died, she toned down a bit and agreed to an exchange project in England. Now, almost six months later, Samantha is back and she might have to bite off more than she can chew.
1. Chapter 1, Founders Day

**A/N: Chapter one of the first book of the Worst Witch. I hope all of you will enjoy this new story. Vampire diaries had been my favourite series during high school and I'd always wanted to play in that particular sandbox. This is the first story I will attempt to write through the first person (I will not change pov's into this either) and I have a good solid idea how to go about it. I want to warn everyone; although I will follow the vampire diaries storyline, no one is safe. Thereby, I will deviate from canon more than once, but then again, this is fanfiction. AU by definition.**

**Also, romance is not the main objective of this story (at least not in the first book), even if it will occur. I'm attempting a story where the emphasis lies on Samantha's growth as a person and a witch. Please let me know what you'll think.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter One, **Founder's Day**

**T**he piano ballad I adored so much playing softly through the speakers of the car was drowned out by the damp hustling outside of the car and I closed my eyes, curling my fingers tightly around my knees. Ever since my parents died, I had trouble getting into a car. Often, getting into a car with someone made me nauseous, but getting into a car with my best friend was even worse. Mayor Lockwood's son liked to push my buttons and although I'd given him enough reason to do so over the years, but I still glared at him when he roughly accelerated. Besides, Tyler was a bad driver even on his best days and my stomach lurched when he sharply turned off the highway and my glare turned more ferocious.

"Tyler Lockwood! One more turn like that and I'll punch you!" I threatened half-heartedly and Tyler grinned wolfishly at me. He had grown at least a head since I'd last seen him and I felt a slight headache start behind my temples.

"Oh, come on, Gilbert! It's about fucking time you got over your car phobia."

"There's no such thing as car phobia. I just don't like getting into a car with _you_!" I returned huffily. I'd missed him. Even though the exchange project had been a nice change of scenery, there hadn't been a day going by where I hadn't missed him.

Tyler snorted: "You don't like getting into a car with anyone."

"Bite me,"

"I think I pass. One can only guess where you've been up to during the past six months."

"Oh, aren't you adorable?" I returned, breathing out sharply when he made another sharp turn.

"So, how was school?"

I shrugged. I didn't hate it, so it was not horrible. I didn't love it, so it wasn't optimal either. But the art classes had been phenomenal. "Fine," I settled on and twined my fingers together. We were now travelling along the asphalt road through the forest just outside of Mystic Falls. Soon we would cross Wickery Bridge and I tensed involuntarily. He must have noticed because he did slow the car down to what he always called the 'snail-race' and shot me a worried glance.

"Are you okay with being here again?"

"This town?" I stared at the first houses, the greenery, the neatly moulded grass fields and the precisely clipped hedges. "It's— Well, I'm fine you know, yet, not really."

"No one blames you for leaving, you know that right?"

I sighed, rolled my shoulders and sank back into the car seat. My nerves eased slightly and I worried my lower lip. "I know that no one blamed me for that." I agreed and Tyler steered the car into Maple Street. "How have things been here? I know you said you were okay, but it must have been hard. Losing Vicki and with your dad."

"Dad is— like usual. I'm mostly glad you're back."

I stared at him, eyebrows raised almost above my hairline. He was still dressed in his Founders Day uniform, looking somewhat ridiculous as a Civil War sergeant and I smiled.

"I missed you too."

"You're not planning on—"

"No," I smiled. "I needed some time on my own. I'm not planning on emigrating to England for good. I promise."

I had felt often bad about leaving him alone when he didn't have so many people around either, but after my parents died and I almost drowned, the exchange project with England had never sounded better. Aunt Jenna seemed to think it was a good idea as well, even if leaving my siblings had been hard. Elena would be fine eventually, she always was, but Jeremy had just reached puberty. He needed someone to count on, a parent to set him straight, instead, he got two sisters (and I, Samantha wasn't that much older than he was) and an aunt who by all accounts was a child herself. But I, I had been fifteen—

I didn't want to be the adult—

I wanted to travel and see the world, but most of all, I wanted no reminder of the horrible memories of my parents drowning beneath Wickery Bridge. I wanted to be as far away from my childhood home as possible and turned my gaze to the window. Almost memorised, I stared at my reflection. My brown hair was chin-length and curled neatly at the edges. I had always been described as resembling my elder sister Elena and although I could see the physical resemblance, I could also see the differences. While my sister was tall, I was rather petite and what dad always called fine-boned, but still sleek and slender. Further my cheeks were peach coloured and while my sister had a lovely olive skin I was a little bit paler.

Right now, I could blame that on the cold sunless months I'd spent in England.

Tyler stopped the car in front of my childhood home and I was pleased to realise I didn't feel horrified by seeing it, but rather, I felt the warm sense of belonging settle into my bones. I hadn't felt that when I'd left.

"Sam?"

"I'm sorry," I whispered, tucking my hair behind my ears and slowly got out of the car. A chilly wind ruffled through my hair and clothes and I pulled the shawl a little tighter about my shoulders. "I just— I didn't expect I would miss it."

"You mean you didn't miss me?" He exaggerated, gripping at his heart and stumbling back into the hood of his car. I rolled my eyes and helped myself to the trunk of his car. My suitcases were neatly stacked and I started to unload them without a word as Tyler smirked.

"What— You're seriously not going to comment on that?"

"Your childish behaviour doesn't dignify a response from me." I retorted tartly and slung my green canvas laptop bag over my shoulder. "Besides, I'm pretty sure I drunk called you once to tell you how much I loved you and hoped you would visit me to take me sight-seeing to the Big Ben."

"You remember that?" He sniggered.

"Unfortunately."

Tyler picked up both of my trolleys as if they weighed less than his baseball bat and made his way to the front door. I followed him slowly, drinking in the white veranda and the neatly trimmed bushes. Twigs snapped beneath my feet in the stillness of the late afternoon and I suddenly got the strange sensation as if someone was watching me. Carefully, not seeing anything strange, I bit my lip.

"Samantha?" Tyler asked, he was leaning against the wall next to the front door and looked at me oddly. "What are you doing? If you're planning on staring down your street, probably reliving childhood memories of punching Matt in his face for telling you, you looked like a boy— which pretty much cemented his point if I may add, all day, I'll leave your stuff here and you can carry it up to your room yourself."

I glared at him: "You're a dick. And for the record; if I was visiting memory lane I would be visiting the memory where I punched you in your face for calling me a sissy."

Tyler laughed at that and eyed me up in a way that used to ruffle my feathers, and rolled his shoulders. "I miss the time where we were the same height. I could get away with scuffling with you then."

I smiled, ignoring the rather dreadful sense someone was still looking at me and twisted the key in the lock: "If you do now, you'll get into trouble, don't you?"

He grinned again and I stepped into the hallway. The trolleys I'd brought, one that had been mine when I left Mystic Falls and one I had to borrow from dark-skinned Daisy who shared Monday's fourth period with me, made a high squeaking noise on the wood-panelled floor. Tyler followed me up the stairs and onto the landing of the first floor and I inhaled deeply. The homey scent was a great reprieve of the slight watery, mouldy scent my dormitory had smelled like and I kicked open my old bedroom door. Everything was exactly as I'd left it (even the heap of clothes I'd dropped in front of my closet had not been touched) and I dropped face-first onto my bed.

Tyler flopped on the bed next to me. And we lay in comfortable silence. "So— not that I mind but why did you not call your aunt or your sister?"

"My aunt had a date with— What's-his-name, and Elena was being her mysterious self but said she wouldn't be home."

"So what— I was your third choice?"

"Fourth actually, I asked Jeremy to come too. He suggested I take the bus."

"Next time you'll find that tiny ass of yours in a bus, that I can promise you." He dryly remarked and I sniggered.

My childhood bedroom was filled with old momentous. I used to collect shells (most of them gotten from Tyler when he went abroad with his family), postcards (very briefly), antique toys (which took up most of the space of my shelves on the wall) and antique coins. The walls were covered with a sheeny, silvery design of a bird wallpaper. The carpet was darker, yet still had that plush feel even below my sneaker-clad feet. Tyler turned over and lay on his side, drawing his index finger over the dark green duvet, tracing the form of a daisy.

"How were things really?" I asked. "I mean, I know Elena fell in love, but—"

"Stefan," Tyler explained. "Stefan Salvatore. He and his brother live up at the Salvatore Boarding House. I'm pretty sure Caroline called them epic."

"Epic?" I echoed, laughing amusedly. "She called them epic?"

"Yeah, Elena seems, and I quote, deeply, passionately and strongly in love with Stefan." He made a face. "They're rather disgusting."

"Hm," I muttered. "That's something to look forward to then."

"No handsome English boys?" Tyler asked, looking rather amused. I grinned before making a face.

"Not really."

"You're such a prude. Why the bob?"

I rolled onto my side as well and ran my fingers through my boyish short-cut hair. "I wanted a change."

"Mission accomplished."

"You're a dick."

"Don't you know it." He grinned before sitting up and jerking to a standing position. "I have to go."

"Oh?" I asked, rather sad to see him go. I had hoped we could have watched a movie, take a crack at it and talk a bit. "Why?"

He made a face: "Founders Day. If I don't even show my face, my dad will kill me. Honestly, I only slipped away without anyone noticing because some kids were partying on painkillers or drugs— probably drugs. I don't think I would have been able to pick you up otherwise."

"Right. Your dad is a douche." I was silent for a moment before pursing my lips. "Of course, I could come along?"

"I did promise to take Matt and Caroline home after the fireworks."

"Matt and Caroline?"

"Believe me, you missed a lot."

"Okay, well, I could call Elena if you need the car space on the way back," I said.

Besides, I could always walk back if that plan failed. After all, this was Mystic Falls. Nothing bad ever happened in Mystic Falls when I'd been here and I pushed my trolley away in my closet before following him out of my room again. The stairs creaked under our combined weight and I sighed softly. Tyler had been my best friend since as long as I could remember and pretty much my only real friend. He was stubborn, short-tempered and easily irritated but we'd always got on like a house on fire. We were almost always together, sat together during lunch, often skipped school and ended up doing our homework in the Lockwood living room or the vast gardens.

He'd been the only one who'd helped me when I'd been a troubled child and the only one who understood me in way that I still couldn't fathom. In exchange, I used to be his voice of reason when he almost murdered Courtney in fourth grade and gave him a key to our backdoor when things at home became too much. I could not even guess how often he'd sneaked into our home and we'd shared my bed. I was pretty sure in the end my parents knew it too, but they also knew we had never been sexually involved, so they never mentioned it. We were almost out of the door when I heard a shuffling sound coming from the kitchen.

"What was that?" Tyler asked slowly and I shared a curious look with him. I had thought no one was home.

The kitchen had pale, crisp wallpapers and the counter was usually clean and gleaming. It might have been like that now, but my attention was completely taken by the sight of Jenna kissing a man, I'd never seen before. I bet I must have looked comically. Coffee-coloured eyes wide, cheeks flushed a dark pink and lips parted with surprise.

"Uh— aunt Jenna?"

"Samantha!" Jenna gasped, stepping back from the man and rushed towards her youngest niece. "Oh, you should have told me you were coming home."

I laughed, hugging her back: "I vaguely remember having told you that over the phone."

"I—" she sounded as if she was thinking. "It must have slipped my mind."

I grinned again as she stepped back: "And that never happens, of course."

"Don't sass me. I have the power to ground you now."

Rolling my eyes, I looked up at the man curiously. "So who's your male friend?"

He was rather handsome, with pale skin and bright eyes. He looked to be in his early thirties. He was tall, slightly athletically build and had short, brown hair and blue eyes. His cheek dimpled ever so slightly as he smiled at me, even though it looked somewhat practised and he stepped forward, holding out his hand. I thought for a second I recognised the ring, but I couldn't be sure.

"That's—" Aunt Jenna started, her cheeks reddening and she chuckled sheepishly.

"I'm Alaric Saltzman, you must be Samantha?"

I nodded and shook his hand. "A pleasure," before smirking at Jenna. "Well, do tell; are you planning on making an appearance on Founders Day?"

"Okay," Jenna stated, shoeing me and Tyler out of the kitchen. "Time for you two to leave. Bye guys."

The kitchen door slammed closed behind us and we broke out in bubbles of laughter. Tyler held himself on the railings of the staircase and laughed so hard, tears started in his eyes and I ran my fingers through my hair until it started to frizz. From the kitchen, we heard Jenna complain to her male friend, Alaric Saltzman, and I laughed even harder.

"Did you see her face?" Tyler ground out between gulps of laughter and I grinned.

"She's always so easy to push."

"Come on. Let's get going before she makes true on her threat and grounds you." He grinned and I zipped up my jacket, felt my pockets for my house-keys and followed him out of the house again. Tyler jammed the keys in the ignition and I sighed lightly, slightly nervous again when he steered the car onto the road. The car radio buzzed to life and a Britney Spears song started. With twilight falling, the streets of the town were busy with people joining rush hour and the closer we came to the centre of the village the busier it became.

"Has Founders Day always been this busy?" I asked absentmindedly, watching the neatly dressed people in passing.

"Are you kidding? This is like Disney land for them." Tyler replied and cursed foully when a dark jeep turned to park into his spot. "Fuckers."

I rolled my eyes and smiled when he could park the car easily, although in a tight spot, in front of the grill moments later. My smile was wiped off my face quickly when I noticed Tyler's dad, face tight with irritation, stalk up to them.

"Uh Ty,—"

"Where were you?" Mayor Lockwood interrupted, dressed in his best tux, his face a snarl and he gripped his son's shoulder hard.

Tyler's face paled and I felt the anger only reserved for Richard Lockwood claw at my insides. Tyler stumbled through an apology and Richard's cold brown eyes focused on me.

"Samantha Gilbert—" He'd never liked me much. Well, the feeling was completely mutual. I glared at him as he gave me one of his standard 'you're trash looks' and scowled. "I had no idea you were back in town."

"Arrived just this morning. Tyler was such a gentleman to pick me up from home."

"Did he now?"

"Yes," I agreed with a sweet, syrupy smile. "You must know how much I hate being in a car. With my parents passing and all—"

His frown eased out only just slightly and I cocked my head to the side. "Right," he agreed and tugged his son towards the festivities. I gave said son an answering grimace and slowly prowled after them. Major Lockwood shook me off quite effectively near the Mystic Falls High school and I nervously tugged at a lock of hair, before strolling across the field and wandered around the centre's square aimlessly.

Sometimes, I mourned the loss of my long curly hair, especially since I used to curl long locks around my fingers when I was nervous or irritated. Curling my hair around my fingers was harder when it was this short. I tucked my waif-like hair behind my ears, turned my fingers to the silver rings on my earlobes and quickened my pace. The monotone buzz of several-hundred voices hummed around me and suddenly, somehow, something in the air changed.

A prickle of dread ran up my spine and I felt the air stir behind me as someone moved quickly past me. With a groan a broad-shouldered man, I hadn't seen in town before, collapsed. I watched horrified as he tried scrambling to his knees, gripping his head between his hands, and was yanked to his feet by two police officers. My mouth fell open when they injected him with something, making him go limp, before they tugged him off, yanking him towards a tinted-windowed car.

"What the hell are you doing?" I yelled and Liz Forbes a stepped out of the gathering hub-hub, moving towards me, her eyes widening.

"Samantha—"

"Don't Samantha me!" I interrupted almost shrilly. "Why are you— the cops— dragging that man off? Injecting him with— whatever that was, I—"

"There are dangerous criminals around. You really should go to the Grill. Perhaps you could find your sister—"

I knew when I was lied to. With two siblings and Tyler for a best friend you just knew and I felt my cheeks heat up. I had never known Liz Forbes, who was Caroline's mother, to lie to me and I stepped back when another person was dragged by. I felt bile crawl up my throat and I reached into my pockets. Surely, I could call armed police or the FBI — this was something I could call the FBI for, wasn't it — but Liz stepped forward, yanking my phone out of my hand and grabbed my arm.

"Come on!" She ordered and although I resisted, I was still a good seven inches shorter than she was and not a trained police officer either.

"You can't do this! This— He didn't—" I said hysterically, for the first time the mother of my sister's friend truly scared me. And I had done some shit that should have made me fear Sheriff Forbes before. "I didn't do anything! Are you going to jam a syringe into my neck as well? This— this is police brutality, you seriously—"

"Samantha Gilbert, you will cease your hampering or you'll spend a night in a jail cell for obstructing police work."

I gaped at her and she managed to shove me inside the grill and pointed me to a booth. The dark bar had never been this empty before, yet the music was much too loud. I didn't think I'd ever felt sicker than at that moment and an unpleasant tingling sensation prickled at my fingertips. I must have started to hyperventilate and clasped my hands tightly around my nose and mouth. Rookie agent (Jason Burke who had been a senior when I'd started high school) nervously came up to us. "Where do you want me to—"

"Gilbert House." She muttered and I probably wouldn't have made it out if I hadn't been sitting so close and felt my eyes widen even more when a young girl was dragged by. My eyebrows scrunched up. They'd muzzled her and I wondered if Mystic Falls had finally truly lost its mind.

"Burke!" Sheriff Forbes suddenly barked and the man eyed his superior worriedly. "Make sure she doesn't leave."

She left in a flurry of huffs and irritated mutterings and I stared up at Jason's face. Age had been kind on him and the spotty seventeen-year-old I'd known was replaced by a broad-shouldered young man. He still had the warm baby-blues and it took everything I had to not cave in and start crying.

"What do you lot want from me?"

His tight expression eased slightly and he reached out as if to touch my shoulder but I flinched so violently he thought better of it. "We're not going to hurt you. Listen, I don't think I'm even supposed to tell you this, but the council agreed to a zero-tolerance policy. I understand it must seem strange, but we're rounding up people, some terrorists who are trying to hurt you all."

"You're not!" Jeremy's voice hissed and I was out of the booth and at his side a second later.

"Oh my God, Jer!"

Jeremy openly stared. "You cut your hair."

Despite everything, I still sniggered: "Geez, good eye."

He made some sort of strangled noise and suddenly lunged at me. I gasped not entirely surprised my brother would hug me but still had not completely been expecting him doing so in front of Jason Burke. What had happened to the fourteen-year-old who thought to hug older siblings was embarrassing? My eyes prickled and I hugged him back, feeling truly horrible for the first time since I'd got home.

"I've missed you, Jer!"

He muttered something I couldn't make out and I hugged him tighter. He was now taller than I was and perhaps even had to shave? I couldn't be sure. He did smell like a man's cologne and slowly he stepped back.

"Are you okay?" He asked, sounding nasal.

"Yes," I ground out feeling actual tears running down my cheeks before I felt myself blanch. Shots were being fired outside and Jason Burke crossed the room towards the door. "What the hell is going on here?"

"They took Anna!" Jeremy whispered and I realised his stricken look might not solely be caused by my sudden appearance.

"Who's—"

"My girlfriend. I can't lose her too, Sam!"

My chest ached and carefully, I spied Burke open the door to aim at someone. "Do you know the cellar?"

"What?"

"He's not letting us go, but through the cellar— there is a window there," I whispered and I pushed him towards the bar. The grill had never been empty at this hour before and it was slightly odd. Jeremy, who was pale and sweaty, nodded. "Okay, we can get out of here through there."

"Where do you think—" Jason Burke demanded and I peered at him fearfully.

"We're hiding at the cellar. You can play hero-cop without us getting caught in the crossfire."

He blinked stupidly and now I was actually glad Liz Forbes had let a rookie deal with us. Sheriff Forbes would never let me pull the wool over her eyes. Not after I and Tyler had nicked her service car on my fourteenth birthday and drove it around town enjoying the loud shrill sirens. Liz had reasons to distrust my word, but Jason did not and he nodded in understanding.

"You always could lie so well."

"Comes with the job." I returned jokingly as I followed him down the rickety stairs and dodged a stack of beer crates. The lightbulbs above our heads were buzzing softly and we nervously turned into the small rectangular room where they kept the extra glasses and empty crates. The small window, with the white peeling paint and the cracked glass, was standing slightly ajar. It was a tight fit, but we managed to climb out of the window without too much trouble and soon found ourselves on the parking lot.

_To be continued..._


	2. Chapter 2, Saving a Life

**A/N: And here is the second chapter! Enjoy and feel free to leave your thoughts. As for Samantha, I suppose there's little need to spell it out, but she is a witch (a bad one...)^^**

Enjoy;

* * *

Chapter Two, **Saving a Life**

**W**ith the wind ruffling my hair, I peered back at the Grill and rolled my shoulders awkwardly. How often hadn't I hunkered down an iced coffee in the hot, sticky summer days or spent an afternoon playing billiard with Tyler (even though I had absolutely no talent for it)? It felt odd that my brother and I now had to squeeze ourselves through the same basement window Tyler and I had squeezed ourselves through to get into the grill when we'd been running from three older bullies when we were thirteen and fifteen. Fingering the zipper of my jacket I pursed my lips.

"Let get moving."

"Where do we go now?" Jeremy asked as we quickly moved across the parking lot. "I— We're out of there now, but I have no idea where they took her."

"I heard Liz Forbes say they had to take— well someone to the Gilbert House. But— our house makes absolutely no sense."

Jeremy bit his lip, thinking hard.

I waited for him to say anything but after a few minutes I sighed: "Why are they doing this anyway?"

Jeremy turned white: "I— I can't tell you now, but— could you please trust me?"

I probably should have said no. I probably should have told him: 'Hell no!', but he was my brother; wasn't that enough reason to trust him? Running the tongue across the back of my teeth, I ran my fingers across my right temple and sighed: "All right. If you want to find her— this girl— Anna? Then we'll have to figure out what Gilbert house they meant."

Jeremy scrunched up his face, hands trembling and face as pale as a sheet. "Perhaps dad's practice—"

"I— I suppose that would make some sense." I agreed and pulled him behind a dark vehicle when a police car sped by. The glare of the blue lights made Jeremy's face look starkly white. I looked around, wondering how we could get close to dad's old practice building if we, the normal public, were not allowed close. Any car would be stopped and I might not have liked getting into a car myself, but if we were going to get there— we would have to. Jeremy was fifteen he wasn't allowed to drive (not that that had ever stopped him, or me when I was younger for that matter, but I was supposed to be the older sister; I should set the example). Another police car was parked to the right of the Grill (probably Jason Burke's) and I stared at it with a deep frown. I was sure the Rookie agent must not have noticed them doing a runner, yet, but we needed to act fast. Besides, I knew how to steal a car—

It was surprisingly easy. You jammed a tire between the window and the door and popped the lock. Alarms could be difficult, but I knew the brand Liz Forbes used. I knew how to disarm those and I grabbed Jeremy's wrist. It was a long time ago the last time I allowed that part of me to be in charge and I swallowed.

I had always been the wild child of the family— got into trouble at every turn I could. And there was a large part of me that itched to regain that wildness again…

"Come on!"

"What are we—" He started and I dragged him up to the cop car.

"Remember when I got into trouble for nicking Liz Forbes' car?" I asked and Jeremy rolled his eyes.

"You mean when dad got so angry he smashed the toaster against the wall?"

"Yes," I admitted, peering around for anything flat and smirked smugly when I noticed the paint spatula near the front door of the Grill. Popping the lock was surprisingly easy and disarming the alarm a little bit less, but at least I managed it without it screaming its guts out.

I got in behind the wheel and Jeremy stared at me with wide eyes before almost reluctantly settling next to me.

"What?"

"I thought you were— apprehensive behind the wheel of a car."

I shrugged: "Old habits die hard I suppose. And besides, like hell that I would let you drive after the bus comment."

"Gee, thanks for the trust."

I rolled my eyes, pushed my hands flat against the plastic cover on the steering column, jangling it until it came loose and felt around to find the wiring harness connector. Jeremy was staring at me as I proceeded to connect several contact wires as if he'd never really seen me before. The car grumbled several times before the motor started and I steered the car harshly out of the parking lot. It took me a few minutes before I managed to get my nerves under control and another before I felt the adrenalin pumping again.

Jeremy smiled slightly: "Between the two of us, you always were the wildest."

"I only didn't do drugs."

He sneered: "Did Elena tell you?"

"Yep." I agreed. "She seems to think I could help you with that. Not sure what she was thinking though! I mean if you were joyriding in police cars—"

"You wouldn't have been able to judge me if I did that."

I grinned: "My point. Besides, drugs are bad, baby-brother."

His retort died in his throat when I turned off the main road and we noticed the roadblock. My mouth fell open and my eyes widened. "Damn, they brought out a lot of cars."

"Do you think—"

"We can pass. It's dark enough." I whispered and changed the gears. Jeremy had never looked so young as he did then and he slumped down in his seat. If I'd expected an exciting ride, I was sorely disappointed. Although three police cars blocked the old sandy road leading to our father's office, bright police lights tinting everything blue, the police officers must have gone out patrolling and I parked the car to the far right between a tall copse of trees. Jeremy peered around with a white face.

"What if she's not here?"

"She is!" I said, not sure what made me feel so sure about this and I switched off the engine. Dad's office building was pale even in the darkness of the night. "Let's go and find— Is that Uncle John?"

Jeremy frowned, following my line of sight. A man with dark, short-cropped hair moved along the street, his face hidden in shadow, but I had known Uncle John for years. So had Jeremy: "Yes, he's back in town."

"Yuck," I muttered, "why didn't you warn me about that!"

"I forgot how much you dislike him."

"He acts like my dad when he thinks I need some scolding," I muttered and crossed my arms over my chest. Jeremy rolled his eyes and inched up on his tiptoes.

"I don't think the front door is being guarded."

I snorted: "Thank God the police force around here still sucks."

Jeremy smiled at that and we moved forward, we doubled back into the woods when someone's footsteps drew closer and hid into the dark shadows provided by the large fir trees. We pressed ourselves against the rough bark of a tree and I narrowed my eyes, squinting through the dark. The second person was moving the other way and was a few inches smaller then Uncle John was. Jeremy seemed to recognise her, but I had not managed to see her face and after Jeremy had curled his fingers around my wrist, we hurried along. The underbrush snagged at my denim-clad legs and I grumbled irritatedly under my breath.

"Why dad's place?" I asked softly, yanking my jacket lose from a creeper and I pulled him along to the back of the building. It was probably a far better plan to take the utility door than stomp through the front.

"Dad was part of this secret order," Jeremy answered and I gave him an unimpressed look. "He was. I swear. There is this council that rounds up supernatural beings."

I swallowed: "Supernatural? Like— Werewolves, fairies and vampires?"

"You've got the latter right."

"They think they're killing vampires!?" I hissed and clasped my hands over my mouth in response. Jeremy froze and we waited with bated breath for someone to come looking for us. When no one did, I lowered my voice as much as I could. "What do you mean they're killing vampires? Do you mean Jonathan Gilbert's odd journals?"

"Yes," he agreed and I shook my head in denial. He was moving again and I shook the fast-beating terror that tried gripping me. Blowing something up, was the last thing we needed and I followed after him.

The way we moved across the damp leaves, fingers trailing down the rough bark of the trees reminded me strangely of the games of hide-and-seek we used to play in our courtyard when I was six and he was five years of age, but I couldn't dwell on it. I breathed out in relief when we managed to reach the utility door and for a moment I was hit with nostalgia. In front of our dad's practice, I felt my mouth dry and I inhaled sharply. Jeremy had already slipped inside and I followed quickly, afraid of being caught. It was odd. There was a roadblock but hardly any, if any, police. It made it easier, but God, police in Mystic Falls was the least organised force of them all.

"Jer," I hissed, "Wait up!"

I crossed the hall quickly and stilled. Something was coming up from the chairs, some kind of energy, an aura and I willed my nerves to stay under control. When I got upset, scared, really worried, strange things always tended to happen. I wasn't entirely sure why or how and I wasn't too willing to delve into them either, so inhaling deeply, I dug my nails into my palms. "Downstairs."

"What?"

"I think— I think they're downstairs."

Jeremy didn't bother waiting for an explanation (because how could I even know that, but I had known things without explanation far before the weird feelings started to accompany them; much like premonitions), threw opened the door and thundered down the stairs. He was a lot faster than me and I saw him disappear through the cellar door when I was still at the top of the stairs.

"No!" Jeremy howled and what followed was a loud wallop and I quickened my steps almost tripping over my own feet and felt my eyes widen when I stumbled through the door. Uncle John lay face-first on the floor, while Jeremy was cradling a petite Asian girl (who probably was just as tall as I was) to his chest. However, it was; not necessarily that sight that made my eyes widen. I was standing in what once was Doctor Gilbert's cellar where he'd normally kept a large variety of moving boxes, but was now filled with almost comatose people, sprawled out onto the wooden floor, fire licking at the walls. Among them was Mayor Lockwood, looking up at me with wide horrified eyes.

I watched stupefied as Jeremy pulled his girl-friend in his arms and turned to me: "We have to get out of here."

"You're kidding right?" I whispered back, glancing at Richard Lockwood again. "We can't leave all of them here."

"Sam—"

"Get your friend to the car," I ordered him and Jeremy looked as if he wanted to argue.

"Jeremy, I trusted you, even though I know there is something seriously wrong here. Now you need to trust me. I— I'll explain, even if I think you'll be horrified."

"She's a witch, Jer," the Asian girl suddenly cut in, eyelids heavy and seeming rather content in the arms of my brother. I peered at her with a frown. I'd never labelled the things I could do as witchcraft but now that I thought about it, it seemed to match rather well.

"Don't be silly— Sam?"

"I never really had a name for it," I answered lamely, now truly regretting my hesitation to delve deeper into all that I could do. "I guess 'witch' works."

The girl's eyes widened and her mouth formed an 'O'. "You never understood."

"Take her out, Jer!" I ordered grossly.

"I get the answers?"

"As will I," I retorted bestowing them both with a stern look and Jeremy turned to the staircase, the steps creaking loudly under his feet as he thundered upstairs. With me standing in the middle of the room the fires remained dormant as if something was controlling them and I seriously hoped that I was doing so. I waited until I heard the door upstairs slam and returned my gaze to the other people again. There were so many of them and even though I agreed with Liz Forbes that Richard Lockwood deserved some horrible fate I felt rather conflicted if it should be the fate burned to death.

My eyes closed and I concentrated. There was a thrumming sort of warmth spreading within my body and my pulse started to race. Listening to the crackle of the fires I willed, hoped and tried to make them stop. My fingertips grew hot and twitched. I had no idea if what I was doing was even working until something started to hiss, distinctively similar to a campfire being dowsed with water. When I opened my eyes again, the fires were gone and it was much easier to breathe.

However, I did feel slightly faint and curled my fingers in the sleeves of my jacket. I'd wondered before if that was how I'd miraculously survived from the car crash that killed both my parents but I couldn't linger on it long because my uncle was stirring, one hand going to the back of his head, where a welt was swiftly swelling. I wasn't sure what I should do. The fires had died and Uncle John was regaining consciousness. It seemed more logical to get out while I still could. He might be able to restart the fire, but he would also be quite out of it. The other people seemed well enough and perhaps I would not get a price for bravery for it, but I turned on my heel and took the steps two at a time. I was almost upstairs when a boy almost ran me over.

"What? Who are you?" He gasped and I frowned.

"Uh—" I couldn't get away with pretending to be a cop. I was too young for that.

"No matter," he whispered and moved past me in one step at the same time Uncle John wrenched the door from the cellar open and stared up at me and the guy for only a second before he pushed him aside. His eyes were gleaming manically and I did the only suitable thing a sixteen-year-old trouble maker could. I turned around, about to make a beeline for the door but then something was jammed into the side of my neck. I gasped in shock whirled around with wide eyes and waited to drop dead or anything. The syringe Uncle John was holding was now empty and I'd call his expression calculation if he hadn't just—

"What?"

John's furious face remained absolute clear, no dark spots or fatigue clouding my sight and I frowned. Anger was the next logical solution even if his expression eased in some resemblance of the face I'd grown up with: "What was that for!?" I demanded angrily and the man looked momentarily at a loss of what to do before slamming the door towards the room full of suspected weirdo's and Tyler's father closed.

"Thank God," Uncle John whispered and his hand shot out, grabbed me and yanked me close. His other arm pressed against my neck, pushing painfully against my jugular and I struggled futilely. I only saw Elena's surprised and scared face for a moment before darkness surrounded me.

_To be continued…_

* * *

**A/N: Next update after the weekend. Let me know what you think!**


	3. Chapter 3, Uncle John

**A/N: First of all, thank you all for commenting, following and favouriting this story. To those of you who're new, welcome! I hope you'll enjoy the first instalment of 'The Worst Witch' and of course, feel free to leave your thoughts in the form of a comment. I do love to read them!**

**Second, I feel it important to tell you that Jeremy's and Anna's relationship was, although short, probably one of my most favourite relationships during the whole show. Forgive me, for not having the heart to kill Anna off (she probably was my favourite character since the second she bumped into Jeremy in the library in season 1 and still holds that spot even after the writers wrote her off). I do have a plan for her, if only in the background. In the beginning, Samantha is not going to be a fan of vampires. I think that's the more logical approach, however, as much as she may feel she should shake her brother and wallop her sister for it, she keeps these opinions mostly to herself.  
She'll take some time to warm up (if she'll ever) warm up to them, and if/when she does, it won't be to Stefan and Damon. I will not let her have any sort of romance with any of them. It has been done and I am still not sure what I want for her in later seasons. The first 'book' will cover season 2 and 3 of vampire diaries. Herein, Samantha will get to practice her magic and grow closer to the darker arts, but it will be subtle. I'm not planning to create a super-witch in the span of the snap of someone's fingers (if I ever plan for such to occur) and as I've mentioned before she will be a bad witch; in more ways than one. She won't have a great start at it and dark magic will come easier to her than light.**

**I feel I've blabbed far too much to all of you already and I'm sorry! If you see a mistake in grammar or spelling, please let me know. My mistakes have more to do with me being a horrible dyslectic than English not being my first language. Anyway, Enjoy!**

* * *

**o.O.o**

* * *

Chapter Three, **John Gilbert**

**P**ushing my hair up in a large messy bun, easing the irritating heat away from the back of my neck, I sighed and leant against the bark of a tree. For a moment I wondered why exactly I had wanted to come here so badly. The music was much too loud, the bass beating in time with my heart and over the roar of music, the air was alive with chatter. There were far too many people packed together, never moving far away from the campfire they made in the little clearing Tyler and what's-his-face had found. I grimaced, swirling my red cup of lukewarm beer in my hand and watched Caroline Forbes getting dragged by, by her boyfriend, looking unamused. Perhaps she looked as I felt and I grimaced again. I couldn't believe this is what I had bribed mum and dad for. Some get together with horrible beer was not my idea of fun. Especially not, if Tyler had not even done everyone the good grace of wrecking his father's strong liquid cabinet.

I supposed it might be odd that a rambunctious person like me didn't like rambunctious environments like a party, but as I watched people getting stupid drunk and pills being shared like a box of tic-tac's, I couldn't find it in me to enjoy it. Perhaps Tyler had spoiled me too much, locking ourselves up in his father's office when I'd turned sixteen last April and shared a bottle of the finest bourbon. Speaking of Tyler, he must have shaken his stupid friend, because he was moving my way and I gave him my best 'I'm-not-amused-face'. He settled next to me offering me a box of cigarettes and I eyed him with a frown.

"Really? First, you socially blackmail me to come here and now you try to get me to give one of your cancer sticks a try? I don't think so."

"Oh, in a bad mood much?" He asked and pushed his cigarettes away. He'd turned seventeen tonight and instead of doing something fun he'd sneaked away from the boring party his parents had arranged, and— now they were here.

"No," I settled on, "but I'm bored. Where's the fun? If I'd known this was what I would be doing instead of family night, I would have stayed home!"

"You are only entertained when something is broken or the police is after us, aren't you?" He asked amused and stared around for a moment, before producing a silvery flask.

I smiled genuinely at that: "Bourbon?"

He smiled like a shark: "Dad will be upset when he finds half of his priceless liquid missing."

"You shouldn't aggravate him like that," I retorted half-heartedly and accepted the flask and pressed the cup of beer in his hands. It burned just as nicely as I remembered and I sighed contently.

"Your sister is coming this way," Tyler whispered slowly and I chocked on my drink before following his line of sight.

Elena Gilbert was confidently weaving through the dancing students, moving towards my secluded spot under the trees. She almost managed to smile at me too, dressed in tight-fitting denim pants and a pink shirt, her waist-length brown hair ruffling in the slight wind. She was holding her phone in such a white-knuckled grip, I felt almost immediately suspicious.

"Hi," she greeted awkwardly and I pushed the flask back in Tyler's hand as subtly as I could, facing my older sister with a tight smile.

"Hello,"

"I—uh, I called mum and dad. They'll come and get us."

"Wait, what?" I stumbled, my eyes widening. "Why? It's only eleven o'clock, we were allowed to stay till midnight! Besides, Matt was going to drive us back!"

"Yes," she admitted, crossing her arms over her chest in her we're-going-to-do-as-I-say stance and I ground my teeth together, trying to keep my temper under control. "But I want to go. Now!"

"And what about what I want?" I asked slowly, punctuating every word irritably. "Did you consider that?"

"Well," Elena shrugged and rubbed her fingers over her upper arms, "it doesn't matter, does it, you're not allowed to stay here without me. And besides, it's not like you were enjoying yourself anyway."

"No, but when do I get the chance to do anything anymore?"

"You were grounded for a reason." Elena bit out and I felt my face flush with anger.

"And you are an uptight little—"

Elena sneered at me and stalked away. "Just make sure you come to the meeting spot." And with that, she was gone. I seethed while Tyler patted my shoulder awkwardly and for good measure, I turned my glare on him too. He, however, was too used to my antics and just shrugged: "You were not enjoying yourself."

"I'm just— I don't know." I agreed finally and stretched my arms in front of me, enjoying the way it made my fingers tingle. "Mom and dad gave me crap about— well, practically everything."

"We did practically blow up the science classroom."

I grinned at that: "You have to admit, that was one of our better pranks. I loved the goat touch."

He barked out a laugh: "They're still looking for goat number three."

"Indeed they are," I agreed. They'd loosened a silly, simple, but quite effective, home-made stink bomb in the chemistry classroom; sending almost every student running out into the corridors. Tyler had followed with setting free three goats, numbered one, two and four. The students had been howling in surprise and the teachers had been chasing the animals and Tyler— Tyler had to repeat a grade but refused to stay clear of Senior prank night. I had just come along the ride. Besides, the goat-part was awesome. "I wonder if they figured it out in the end."

Tyler's grinning face started to fade.

I felt the beginnings of panic—

And suddenly—

I woke up with a start, my heart beating fast and my head pounded awfully. I groaned, sitting up slowly and pushed off my comforter with a gruff huff. I hadn't dreamt about the day my parents had died in a long time and I rubbed my fingers in slow circles over my temples. At least, I hadn't dreamt about Tyler's party. If I dreamt about that day, I dreamt about my mum screaming, my dad horrified face when he lost control over the car and Elena's knee colliding painfully with mine when she went to grab for my hand. I'd dream about the way my stomach dropped when the car went sailing through the air and crashed through the safety barrier. I'd remember my scream riveting through the car before the cold water developed me and the pain lancing across my ribs and settled into my lungs as air escaped my mouth in air bubbles, rising into the dark recesses of the lake.

I groaned…

My room was dark and tiredly I tried to smooth down my hair, which flew in all directions. I'd been in the middle of untying several tangles with my fingers when I realised I couldn't remember how I came to be home. My heart wrenched painfully when I understood I wasn't home at all and with quickening breath, I felt around until my fingers slid past a light switch. There was a low ceiling above me and I threw my legs over the edge of the bed. I was still fully dressed ('Thank God'), although my jacket was gone and I stumbled to my feet.

The room was simple with light curtains and a beige-gold accent could be found on the walls. The room was small with one bed and a door leading to what I assumed was a separate bathroom and another out of the bedroom and into the rest of what I considered was a hotel room (obviously). I'd also remembered Uncle John and my fingers splayed out over the side of my neck, finding it slightly irritated but otherwise fine.

"I'm going to strangle that idiot," I mumbled angrily and stomped out of the room and froze in the living area. Uncle John was seated on the beige couch, situated against the wall, inset with large windows. He had one foot propped up on the coffee table, filled with papers and books and somehow I was momentarily distracted. Outside it was still dark and so now and then the moon would briefly peek out behind the clouds, illuminating the windowsill. He was on the phone and from what he was saying, I concluded he was handling the still ongoing fiasco that was the fire at Grayson Gilbert's former office and my face flushed in anger. With a huff, I stomped over to him.

"How could you do that?" I demanded and he looked up with tired eyes ending the call abruptly. "What were you hoping to achieve— What if your stupid concoction killed me?"

"I had to be sure," he whispered, brushing a hand over through his short hair, standing it up on end. "You managed to get there with Jeremy in tow— I had to be sure."

I deflated a little at that. His face and voice were devoid of the anger I had come to expect and my arms fell uselessly at my sides. "What do you mean?"

"Jeremy and his girlfriend." He whispered with distaste and I exhaled loudly.

"What do you mean?" I asked again, cocking my head to the side. "Why do you insist on speaking in riddles?"

He looked up at me again and got slowly to his feet, moving as if he was afraid he would scare me away like I was some kind of skittish animal. His hands came up to my shoulders and I couldn't help but freeze. Either he didn't notice or else he didn't let on he noticed and checked my face, my head and then the scratches I hadn't noticed on my arms. "Still fine."

I sighed: "Is this about the supernatural thing? The vampires? I can't believe you of all people—"

"It's real." He stated and dropped his hands away from me. It was odd, normally he would have been lecturing me from the minute I stepped inside the living area. Clouds shifted in the sky and the light of the moon filtered in through the windows again. One was standing the tiniest bit ajar and I seemed to smell the charged, bitter aroma of lightning-to-come. Uncle John was pushing me to the table and I settled tiredly into one of the chairs, worrying my lower lip with my blunt front teeth. "There are vampires in this town. Newcomers that feed on the innocents."

"I—" my voice came out small. If I could influence things around me, make things move, hear voices— let things explode or even extinguish, how difficult would the existence of the supernatural be? Biting my lip hard enough to draw blood a curled my legs up on the chair until I sat cross-legged on the wooden seat. "Why would you tell me now anyway?"

"Because I want you to stay out of this." He remarked slowly, settling on the edge of the table. "Because your sister and brother are already in too deep—"

I frowned before my lips parted in understanding: "The Salvatore boy?" He nodded and started a tale I found hard to believe. Told me about how the journals my grandfather's father had kept were not ill-advised ghost stories, and how vampires had infiltrated their town before. How many innocents had been killed and how it had all started again last September. I felt rather sick and as he started to explain about the counterattack during Founders Day, I peered at the coffee table, concentrating on the familiar brown leather covered book until it came soaring to me. His eyes widened and I almost managed to smile at his reaction. Almost. "Your syringe doesn't work on me remember?"

"I'd always known you could do things. I just didn't know you could control it." He whispered and I felt my eyebrows furrow together.

"You knew?"

"Yes," he agreed before slumping down on the wooden chair opposite of me. "You blew things up from the moment you started to walk. It was hard to miss."

I frowned: "But— how am I still alive if you're a lot all are after—"

"I hoped we would never be having this conversation. Have you read those journals?"

I averted my eyes from his and stared at one of my Great-grandfather's journals. I wasn't sure which one it was but I did read many of them. "I guess."

"Johnathan Gilbert was seeing a witch."

"So being a witch is okay, but being a vampire is a crime?" I summarised.

"Do you know how many they've killed. Those Salvatore boys? I've known you since you were born. You were not exactly harmless but you are not a monster either." He tried explaining and dropped his head into his hands before sighing and I pulled both of my legs up the chair.

"If you all knew what I was, regardless of not thinking I'm a monster, why would my parents adopt me?"

"What?"

"Please, that is not a secret well kept. I've known for— years."

He intertwined his fingers on his lap, his back stiff, before finally sighing: "How did you find out?"

"Chemistry, I was thirteen." I retorted and traced my finger pads over the rough leather. He was still looking up at my face with curiosity. "We determined our blood-groups in third grade. I knew my parents' blood-groups. I'd seen their donor codicil before, A and O and well, mine simply didn't add up. A and O can't suddenly go and make a child with blood group B."

He gave out a dry, humourless laugh at that: "Of course, you'd figure it out after something as stupid like that."

"It's not stupid."

"I don't know much about witches. Just that they're there." Uncle John stated, a half-smile curving his lips. "And that your great-grandfather was in love with one. When trained, witches are supposed to be able to do wonderful things."

"I'm not— well, I can do things, but more often it takes me by surprise," I answered finally, unsure why I felt so confident to talk with uncle John, out of all people. "I don't know many people, if any really, who know how to control what I can do."

"And I'd recommend staying away from it as much as you could." Uncle John whispered, I glared at him for that comment and he pressed his steepled fingers to his lips. "Not from magic itself, just, the people here who can teach you— I'm not doing a great job at getting you to stay away from it, am I?"

I sniggered: "When did you ever stop me from doing what I wanted?"

"Samantha, this is not the same. This is not stealing a cop car or nicking the school banner and hanging it in the bleachers with feathers and coloured-slivers."

"Hey, if there is a way to learn!" I stated, wrapping my arms around my knees. He gave me a look before he brought his hand over his eyes and sighed loudly.

"You'd need a grimoire." He finally decided on.

"A Grimoire? Seriously?"

"Yes," he agreed. "We have one."

"You do?" I asked softly and he dropped his hands. With lips pressed tightly together, I searched his eyes for deceit. I didn't find any. "Why, are there more—"

"No, Emily Bennet left it with us." He explained and I had the feeling she hadn't so much as left it but rather died while Johnathan Gilbert held on to it. "I could give it to you—"

He was interrupted by a sharp knock and he slowly heaved himself to his feet. I watched him go, disappearing through the hallway and mulled over his words. I'd heard about the deaths, the disappearances and mutilations. Was Uncle John truly so wrong for wanting the animals that did such things out of the town? Even if I did not agree with his methods and—

Uncle John yelled and I jumped up dropping the book to the floor and scurried over to the front door. Uncle John was laying on the linoleum floor, bleeding and Elena, my sister, her hair curly and eyes vengeful, was standing over him. I think I might have shrieked. My voice might have gone high enough to shatter glass and Elena looked up in surprise.

"What? Elena!? What did you— Oh my God!"

I'm not sure what she expected but I seemed to be the last thing on earth she could have bumped into and her eyes went wide. She looked so horrified, so absolutely freaked out and then she was gone. The door slammed harshly closed and I stared at it through tear-filled eyes. My insides did a flip before I dropped to my knees and scrambled to John's trembling body. Blood, he was bleeding all over my clothes and over the floor and, in a fit of genius I yanked my shirt over my head, leaving me in my tank top before I pressed it as tightly as I could against the wound on his abdomen.

"Oh God," I whispered because his blood was quickly soaking my shirt and I used my left hand to wipe the blood away, even as tears had started to shimmer in my eyes, and felt around for a phone. I blinked the tears back fiercely and chocked on a sob when my fingers curled around a mobile phone. "U-uncle John, you have to stay awake. W-what's your password?"

My fingers slipped on the phone and I dropped it next to his head. He was gasping like a fish out of the water and I slapped him. "What's your password. For your phone!"

"One— one, nine, seven and zero." He finally gasped out and I followed his instructions. It took me only one attempt to make the emergency call and keeping the phone on speaker, I pressed both hands to the wound.

"I— I need an ambulance!" I whimpered and Uncle John grounded out where they were.

At least he was still awake, if barely and I kept whispering to him even though l was reeling. My sister had tried to kill my uncle. I'd never been close to my sister. I'd always gotten on better with Jeremy who was a wild child just like I was. Even in my memories when I was a child, Elena and I did not get on, but I didn't think I could ever hurt her. Nor could I understand why Uncle John would not want anyone to know that she was the one to stab him. Or at least I didn't until he managed to splutter about Doppelgängers.

"I—It wasn't Elena," he whispered, "K—Katherine, it was Katherine."

"Katherine?" I mumbled and he nodded before finally fainting, his eyelids fluttering closed. "Who the hell is Katherine?"

Of course, he didn't answer. I breathed out a sigh in relief when the ambulance arrived. Uncle John was levelled up on a stretcher, taken away out of the hotel and I followed rubbing my hands together. The police were quick to intercept me, Liz Forbes taking me apart and pushed me into the back of her car. I'd decided to play dumb hoping John Gilbert could make up something himself because I— I was at a loss!

It was late in the morning when one of the deputies dropped me off in front of the house at 2104 Maple Street. I was still reeling and made a beeline inside. My bedroom was on the second floor of the house with its small bathroom. I'd gotten it because Elena wanted the bedroom closest to our parents and although Jeremy wanted it, I'd called on my veto right as second-oldest and got it mostly to humour me. I was glad I had it now as I stumbled blindly past the silvery bird wallpaper and into the bathroom. My hands were red with Uncle John's blood and my face was flushed with horror. It took me several tries before I managed to open the tap and the water immediately turned the sink a pinkish hue as I scrubbed the blood off my hands. The water was still running long after my hands were clean of blood but red from the scrubbing and I tried to keep my breathing even.

I sat on the edge of my bed the rest of the morning until finally my mobile phone rang and the hospital staff members promised me that my Uncle would be fine.

Elena came to see (interrogate, really) me at lunchtime. I was quite proud of myself for not running once I saw her and even managed to play dumb through all of it. She wanted to know what I was doing in dad's burning practice (I returned that one with a 'what were you doing there') before answering truthfully that Jeremy asked my help. She fished a little bit when she wanted to know what I knew of vampires, and I laughed at her stupid attempt. It was a good thing Elena took that as proof I knew of nothing and I managed to walk her to the front door before she went to the Hospital to visit Caroline. The blonde girl who'd used to tease me for my boyish ways and who'd been Elena's best friend since— well, forever really. She'd had never been my favourite person in the world. She'd always been Elena's friend and I tolerated her solely for that reason. I can't say I hated her, I didn't, and besides our dislike of each other was mutual. I was pretty sure she couldn't stand my old-fashioned skirts (when my mum managed to get me into one) or the messy buns I'd preferred during all of my childhood.

I waited until I heard the door of her car slam closed. Until I was sure my sister was gone (my sister who knew about the supernatural drama that was Mystic Falls) and stalked into her bedroom.

Tucking my hair behind my ears, almost shoulder length, but not quite, and curling messily around my cheeks, I breathed out loudly. Elena kept a diary. Had done so since she was ten-years-old and had always been quite thorough. I would only have to find it.

I truly hoped she was just as sloppy with her hiding places as she'd been before—

_To be continued..._

* * *

**A/N: and what can I say moody sixteen-year-olds thinking the world is slightly unfair, seems pretty accurate to me. As for the display of magic. Sam has some control, although the knowledge of what it exactly was, she could do helped her telekinesis along a good way. As for the accident that killed Mrs and Mr Gilbert, yes, Samantha was in the car, no Stefan was not the one to get her out (although this part is not important for the plot of the story). **

**Also, for a much later part of the story, I needed Samantha to be adopted as well. It will be explained later on. Muchhh lattteeerrr…**

**Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed the newest chapter. Have a good night and I hope to metaphorically see you all upcoming Thursday when I'll post the next chapter. **


	4. Chapter 4, Research

**A/N: And here is chapter four! Enjoy!**

* * *

**o.O.o**

* * *

**Chapter Four, Research**

**M**y Converse-clad feet slapped noisily against the sidewalk and the blazing sunlight blinded me slightly. It was still chilly, yet, spring was in the air and crocuses were already poking up from the grounds. I let my left arm limply hang on my canvas laptop bag and inhaled deeply. Even though the sun was out and about, it was a watery morning, with a wispy layer of morning mist swaying above the backyards I passed. Brushing a lock of dark hair out of my face, I pushed the hood of my jacket up over my head and pushed my hands deep inside my pockets. I was still slightly reeling from the whole ordeal of last night and my head felt painful. It had taken hours until I finally found the diary I was looking for, hidden beneath the windowsill and now I had it pushed away into the recesses of my book-bag.

It had also taken hours to fall asleep, although I wasn't a hundredth per cent sure if I had fallen asleep at all. Crossing my right arm over my chest gripping the bicep of my left, I pulled my mobile free from my pocket. It was ten o'clock and I was reasonably sure the school library would be deserted. It usually was at Saturdays when only the students who'd received detention would be around. It was the way I liked it. Especially now that I had research to do. And moreover, I hoped my sister wouldn't look for me there. I might have liked the library reasonably enough, I did not like school as much.

Letting my eyes rove over the silent school yard, I crossed over to the wooden double doors and pushed inside. The school always looked different without the couples making out against the lockers, the jocks throwing over someone's backpack or the clique of girls that would give you derisive expressions. It was empty, quiet. I'd walked these corridors countless times before and breathed in slowly when I entered the library.  
I'd always reasonably enjoyed the library. It was my welcome reprieve and even when doing things my parents were not happy about, I could keep my marks up and perfect and that would settle their irritate feelings enough to leave me alone after a while. Also, I really loved the smell of worn parchment, of wood polish and occasionally the scent of new books. However, now, I couldn't really enjoy it much. I had a different purpose. Uncle John's story had scared me enough to research the subject more thoroughly. Normally, I would have asked Jeremy, but, although he would tell me, I had the feeling not even he knew everything. I knew what my sister was like. She'd be in her I'm-the-older-sister-mode and be totally unreasonable.

I settled at a table in the back, near the computers and hid myself behind several stacks of books. At least I'd always been methodically in researching a subject.

As I flicked through my sister's dairy I wondered if I'd even needed any other research method. Stefan was a vampire (I'd known that) and her boy friend (I'd known that too), Damon, Stefan's older brother was one and a bit (if not a lot) of a monster. They'd metaphorically set Mystic Falls on fire and as I read on, I realised Uncle John was right. Elena had a vampire twin; Katherine. At least, that made more sense than my older sister stabbing my uncle. I was furious by the time I caught up to Founders Day. Elena had been living a double life and had been endangering everyone we knew for the past four months.

It was not hard to see it Uncle John's way.

Not really. Although, when Jeremy had cradled his girlfriend — Anna the Vampire — to his chest I'd been so pleased. He'd been so down for so many months and I'd seen it in his face, but— Uncle John wasn't exactly wrong. The evil twin vampire certainly was the worst kind of them and I ground my teeth together.

"Sam,"

I squeaked throwing over a stack of books and starting to push the diary into the recesses of my canvas bag. Jeremy Gilbert was moving my way, girlfriend Anna behind him and felt my shoulders droop. "Jer,"

"You took Elena's diary?" He smiled slightly at that. "She didn't get better at hiding it I suppose."

"Jeremy…" I answered slowly and I peered at the girl behind him, "And Vampire Anna."

"Just Anna, really." She answered slowly and I nodded moving up to my feet jerkily.

"I wanted to let you know, at least." Jeremy softly explained and I felt one eyebrow rise critically.

"What do you want me to know?"

"I'm leaving."

"Hell no!" I whispered horrified and my eyes flitted to Anna's form. "You can't be seriously considering leaving with her? What about Elena? What about Jenna?"

"Don't speak of Elena!" He hissed and I waved my hand dismissively in front of my face. "And you!"

"Yes, I know I kept the witch thing from you. But in my defence I wasn't even aware what it was and the last time I told people of something weird happening around me, everyone shunted me!" I retorted.

"How could you not know?" Anna asked slowly, obviously only focusing on the first part of my explanation and I peered around. We were still alone, not even the librarian was around and I hugged my leather jacket around my shoulders.

"No one ever told me being a witch was a thing." I responded slowly.

Anna curled a lock of dark hair around her fingers: "I've never met a witch who did not know what she was."

"I'd never met a vampire before." I retorted tightly. "Till a girl who looked like Elena stabbed my uncle."

"What?" Jeremy hissed. "You said you didn't see—"

"I promised to not get involved. I can think about that promise pretending I don't know. Elena doesn't know I know. I wish to keep it that way. I couldn't exactly tell Elena I saw _her _evil twin if I wanted to keep it that way." I sniffed. "She thinks I'm compelled— I think it's called like that?"

"Yes," Anna agreed, "it is."

"Listen," Jeremy interrupted and dropped a hand on my shoulder. "I know you're shocked. When I learned about all of this, I was too, but I need you to understand this. You of all people— I need some time. I _need_ this— to be away from Mystic Falls."

"But—"

"Anna will take care of me!" He said and I knew I should say something to make him change my mind. I should but he was looking at me with those trust-filled eyes and— really had I ever been able to deny him anything when he looked at me like that? I had never been the overly responsible one. I'd occasionally try, but I just wasn't. I wasn't like Elena… Evidently, I wan't and I bit my lip hard enough to draw blood, running my fingers through my hair, closing my eyes in desperation. My heart was beating fast and my fingers started to tingle.

I tried to calm my breathing when I noticed things around me starting to vibrate with energy. I managed partly but when I opened my eyes again nothing was irreversible broken. However, papers full of notes and books lay scattered along the floor.

"You don't really control it well, do you?" Anna asked softly and I took a surreptitious step backwards. She shot me a smile that was a bit more sly than it was sweet but the way she had inched half in front of my brother, protectively shielding him, made my breath hitch and my resolve crumble.

"No, I probably do need some help in that department." I agreed and Anna's expression faltered. I knew what she was thinking. Strangely enough, I could read it on her face and I crossed my arms over my chest. "I really want to make a scene. Scream, threaten you, but I want my brother's happiness more."

Anna's dark eyes widened for a moment before she made a sound in the back of her throat, almost like a growling sort of laugh. A faint flush crept up her neck as she dropped her head into her hands and Jeremy opened and closed his mouth. "Your letting us go?"

"You expected me to fight you? To lecture you?"

Jeremy shrugged, sunlight filtering in through the windows and framed his head like a halo: "Stupid, I suppose. You're not Elena after all."

"I could lecture you if you'd want?"

"No—"

"I want you to call me," I interrupted swiftly and he eyed me in a way that made him look a lot younger. "Every day. I will buy you time, making up excuses for Elena, but— I need you to call me. I need to know you're safe." And I turned to vampire Anna; "As for you, if you hurt my brother—"

"I won't Samantha. I promise you." She returned earnestly and seemed to mull over her words for a moment. "I— I could try and find a Grimoire for you? Sent it to you. You could learn from it and I could prove my intentions?"

I sighed. I understood that she felt the need to appease me, but there was really no need to bribe me. On the other hand her face looked so hopeful I could only just nod awkwardly: "Okay,"

She smiled briefly and I hugged my brother, tightly, blinking against the unexpected sting of tears. Jeremy's arms tightened around my waist, crushing me against him and I had no idea how I was going to go through all of this without some support. I felt Jeremy's heart beat quickly and when I let him go, I closed my eyes. I wasn't sure why, yet, when I opened them again they were both gone and I was alone. I heard the door swing shut behind them and it gave me a strange sense of foreboding. A loneliness I hadn't even felt when I'd practically fled to England curled in my stomach and I rubbed my hands together. Back when my parents had just died and I inhaled sharply. I'd had bad dreams for months. Dreams filled with muddy water closing around my body and taking away my breath, crushing down on my chest and limbs. However, it was almost a year ago and although I truly didn't like sitting in a car, I'd grown stronger.

I'd have to grow stronger again.

But first, I had to return Elena's diary before she'd miss it. Collecting my possessions I dropped them in my bag and hurried out of the library, still feeling cold and strange. My swift footsteps reverberated through the empty hallways and I inhaled in deeply, gratefully, when I threw open the doors and stepped out on the school yard and I made my way to the edge of the parking lot. The sun had warmed the asphalt and for several seconds I just leant against the low balustrade, watching out over the grass field were the cheerleaders practiced their routines. I really hadn't thought I would miss it.

It was gone when an unfamiliar blue Chevy pulled up beside me. The window rolled down and icy blue eyes twinkled at her: "You're Elena's sister, right? Samantha?"

I stared at him with narrowed eyes, survival instincts screaming at me to get the hell of there yet, he looked familiar and I cocked my head to the side. "I— Yeah? Who are you?"

He grinned and I had to admit he was handsome, with an angular nose a strong jaw and full lips and finally I remembered why he looked familiar. I'd seen him in my father's cellar but I didn't think it would be wise to admit that to him. "My name is Demon," he greeted lightly, "I'm a— ah friend of your sister's."

"Do you want a medal?" I asked, wincing slightly when I realised sarcastic might not be appreciated by a vampire but the man just laughed.

"My, feisty, I think I like it." He grinned again, winking at me and I concluded that this was the Damon Salvatore who so often irritated my sister and had murdered quite a few people including Mister Tanner. I wasn't sure if I should feel horribly furious about the latter and I readjusted the straps of my canvas bag on my shoulder. "Do you need a lift? You don't have school right? And after the whole ordeal that happened yesterday… I would feel really shitty if I just left you here."

I realised belatedly he must have been briefed by my sister. I realised even later that this was him inviting me into his car to interrogate me. If I could persuade him, I would be safe. Yet, I would have to act normal…

"I'm not sure—" I started slowly, hesitantly, yanking at a loose thread of my shirt, "You may say you're my sister's friend, but I don't know you."

"I could call her?" He offered lightly. "I just I don't feel right leaving you here."

I bit my lip. Even if he wasn't per se looking out for my welfare he did have a point. "Okay," I conceded. He grinned warmly at me this time and unlocked the door to the passenger seat. I made my way over with an increasing feeling of worry and fear but managed to drop back in the leather seat with just a soft sigh. "Just a heads up, I'm not a fan of cars."

He nodded, perhaps he'd learned of the car accident from my sister. If so I could downplay my nerves to the car. That wouldn't be so hard as I actually accidentally jumped when he geared up and drove away from the parking lot. The drive was silent, which I hadn't accounted for and I stole several glances at his face. Elena had been right. He really was unfairly handsome.

"So, Sam, can I call you Sam?"

"I suppose,"

"You've just returned to Mystic Falls, right?"

"Yes," I agreed, "I was part of an exchange project. It was enjoyable."

"Hm," he agreed slowly before turning to me, his eyes no longer on the road and I felt my heartbeat accelerate.

"Please, keep your eyes on the road."

"Don't worry," he said cheerfully, before somehow his eyes became really serious and his pupils dilated. "Tell me what you know."

"Know about?" I answered as stupidly as I could.

"What do you know about vampires? What did John Gilbert tell you?"

I furrowed my brow before spewing out what came to mind first. "Uncle John? You mean like twilight? I don't know— they sparkle in the sun?"

His concentration broke and his tight expression slacked. I concluded I could do so too and moved a bit away from him and hit my head against the window. He grumbled something, moved the car roughly to the side, parking it three streets away from my home and grabbed my chin. His nostrils flared and I had no idea what he was looking for, however, my heart was beating madly.

"What are—"

His pupils dilated again: "You will not scream."

My mouth turned dry immediately and one hand fisted in my hair, yanking my head to the side and baring my neck. Was he seriously going to bite me? My breath came out in short strangled pants and I tried to pull away a bit. This was bad. The more upset I grew, the higher the chance I'd blow something up. I'd broken someone's leg in England because he'd scared me so bad I couldn't control myself. I didn't know how to keep myself under control and I felt my fingertips tingle. The power that could curl through my veins was enormous. Damon's face had come even nearer until I felt his breath fan out over my cheek and neck. He was— sniffing me. What the hell?

"No Vervain…"

His voice was so soft I'd wondered for a moment if he'd actually said anything, but then pain shot up my throat and I couldn't stop the strangled gasp that escaped my lips. My hands went to his shoulders pushing as hard as I could but he was stronger. It felt strange, the sensation of someone drinking from you, he sat back. Both hands were now on my face keeping me in place and he looked at me again, dark veins protruding around eyes that did no longer look so human anymore.

"You fell at school and cut your throat—" he started in that compulsory tone and I realised that no matter how difficult it had been, I'd succeeded, "—nothing else happened. I just picked you up and offered you a lift."

His hands fell away and his eyes returned to normal, expectantly staring at me. I blinked a few times before slumping back in my seat. It took several breaths before I trusted myself to speak. "I'm sorry, what were we talking about?"

He smirked, the remnants of blood gone from his mouth but he'd missed a speck on his chin. "You were telling me about your school."

"Right," I agreed flippantly. "It was fun. Really, rainy though— and the accent—"

He oh'd and ah'd on the right moments and when he pulled up before my house I grinned earnestly. Or as earnestly as I could and clapped my hand around my neck. The wounds were shallow, at least he didn't seem to have bitten me hard and I hurried out of the car. Damon clambered out of the car behind me and I slammed the front door childishly. Elena appeared from the kitchen the next moment and I smiled sheepishly at her.

"What happened to your neck?" She demanded horrified and I felt he childish need to push my sister's buttons.

"Oh," I replied as robotically as I could and shrugged simply, "I had an accident at school and cut my throat. I do feel kinda faint though, I think I'm going to lie down."

The front door opened behind me and Elena looked furious: "Damon!"

I ascended the stairs with a small smile listening to my sister's hushed tones as she berated him for biting me. I had just moved into Elena's room when I heard Damon hiss that she was the one who asked him to find out if I knew something and how else was he supposed to make sure I hadn't taken Vervain (I didn't think I needed it). I left them to their bickering, hid Elena's diary where it was supposed to be and quickly tip-toed towards my own room, locking my bathroom door behind me. Blood made a rust-coloured swirl around the ceramic sink and I stared at my reflection until the blood was gone. The twin bites actually looked a lot better than I'd expected and I treated them with a few bandages.

I remained staring at my reflection for several more moments before flicking off the light and dropping face-first on my bed. Feeling faint wasn't a complete lie and I moaned softly. I really didn't think I could do this alone. Lying to my sister— well, that wasn't the hardest part, but pretending I knew nothing about her Vampire boyfriends? I wasn't sure. I really needed help from Tyler in that department and suddenly my insides froze.

Tyler—

I hadn't even thought about him. "What horrible friend am I?"

And with a new sort of hurry I fished around in my bag until I found my phone. My phone which had been on airplane mode all day almost got into a frenzy when messages started to drip in. I'd missed nine calls from Uncle John, with three voicemails and several messages. My heartbeat turned a bit erratically when worry seeped through my body: "Okay."

_Samantha,_

_Stefan and Elena came to see me. They'll probably try to figure out what you know. Take Vervain and act stupid. _

_Love,_

_Uncle John_

"Gee, thanks for the heads-up, Uncle John." I muttered before ignoring the other pleading messages to message back and quickly dialled his number. He answered almost immediately.

"Samantha?"

"Yeah, it's me." I affirmed, suddenly remembering the heightened senses part in Elena's diary and blurted out the first thing I thought about. "How are you feeling? I met Damon Salvatore just moments ago. Was quite worried about you."

"Did he—

"He tried. Why again did that not work on me?" I interrupted him quickly. Hoping to be as curt and weird as possible so only my Uncle would understand me.

Uncle John was silent for a moment and I listened to his breath. It was a bit uneven. "I'm not sure. I could try and find out, but that's good— Sam, I'll have to leave for a while. It's not save for me, but I need you to—"

"I thought you didn't want me involved?"

He sighed: "I really wished you didn't have to. Just try and take care of everyone. And Samantha if you dare to get involved with—"

"No thank you, after the stunt Damon pulled I wouldn't even consider it."

Uncle John was silent for a moment. "What did he do?"

"It doesn't matter, just know I sold it. Where are you now?" I asked and I heard something rumble in the background. "Are you in a car?"

"Yes," he admitted. "I'm on my way in Denver. We have family there and I need a while to regain the function in my fingers."

"Right," I agreed slowly and I nibbled on my lower-lip, "Do me a favour, Uncle John, I really need that Grimoire you spoke about."

"You get it, I promise!"

_To be continued..._

* * *

**A/N:**** What can I say; Damon is a bit of a d*ck. And, well I couldn't help the little jab at Twilight. I'm pretty sure VD had a few of those too? Let me know what you think. **


	5. Chapter 5, A Stupid Rock

**A/N: And here is chapter five! Enjoy!**

* * *

**o.O.o**

* * *

Chapter Five, **A Stupid Rock**

**T**he branches behind him framed Tyler's head like a twisted crown and his face was thrown in shadow. They were at the edge of the Lockwood property, the wind ruffling through my hair and the sun warming my bare legs. With his father in hospital, in a coma and absolutely oblivious to the world, I'd found it hard to break the news of the supernatural to him. However, we'd long ago agreed that we would tell each other everything and I really needed someone to know what I knew. Still, to learn that the existence of vampires were real, that was utterly unexpected. He'd readily believed me of course, especially after I'd did a little spell (setting a small branch on fire), but with this knowledge, more questions rose. The device that had been used during Founder's Day had affected both Richard and Tyler Lockwood and now we wanted to know why. Just, not much came forward.

"I just—" he started helplessly and I tried to smile.

"I know,"

"Supernatural…" He whispered, "I'm quite sure I'm not a vampire though."

"No, besides I don't think Vampirism is congenital. A warlock seems far-fetched as well, with what, you being affected by the device and me not?"

"Good point," he agreed irritably.

"What?"

"I rather liked the idea of setting things on fire." He muttered.

I rolled my eyes and peered at the angles of his face, watching as his brows furrowed together in concentration. Several buttons of his shirt were undone, exposing the tanned line of his collarbone and I concluded, with the sort of clinical detachment only best friends could develop, he'd grown from a silly looking boy to a handsome young man. I understood why several of his female classmates batted their ridiculous long eyelashes at him.

"My uncle is in town." Tyler admitted and I moved closer to him until our arms were touching and I could prop my head up on his shoulder. "He's acting super weird."

"I remember Mason." I whispered, remembering the man (he'd probably really only been a teenager then) trying to push daisies in my hair and threw Tyler in the swimming pool to push our buttons. "But hasn't he aways been a bit weird?"

"Fine," Tyler conceded. "My uncle is in town and he's acting even weirder than normal. He says he is here for dad. Because he is in a coma and all, but he hasn't even visited him yet."

"I'm really sorry about that." I said slowly. Although Caroline Forbes made a miraculous recovery after a horrible car accident Richard Lockwood had got stuck in my father's office when the ceiling came down. I wasn't even sure how the ceiling could have come down in the first place but I thought it might have something to do with Bonnie Bennett. The dark-skinned girl who was Elena's best friend was supposed to be a witch as well.

"It's not your fault."

"Yeah, but I don't think you want me to say what I really think." I said. I did feel bad that his father had been hurt, guilty too, but I was glad he was not near Tyler anymore.

"I know what you think."

I pursed my lips: "I have my reasons."

"Yes," he agreed and allowed it when I squeezed his hand.

"What is Uncle Mason here for, if it isn't for his brother?" I asked and inhaled noisily.

"Some stupid rock." He said, laughing hollowly.

"A rock?"

"Yeah," he nodded and I poked him in the arm.

"And you know where it is?"

"Well," Tyler retorted slowly, suddenly catching on to my line of thoughts. We were thinking about supernatural occurrences. We couldn't think of anything related to Tyler, yet, his uncle was in town for some rock… "I know of more secret stash places than he does."

I grinned at that: "Care to make it a search party?"

His smirk turned ferocious: "I hoped you'd ask."

I returned his smirk with one of my own and we moved quickly towards the mansion. We stepped inside, with both Tyler's mother and uncle out we had the place to ourselves and I winced slightly when the door closed noisily behind me. Dim sun light filtered in through the tainted-glass windows above my head and I followed Tyler across the Entrance hall. A heavy familiarity rose inside me as we started to climb the stairs. I'd used to practically lived at the Lockwood house even if Richard Lockhart was not my biggest advocate.

I would admit, if only to myself, that I did nothing to dissuade Tyler's stupid plans and more often than not, made sure they were even more ill-advised. Shaking my head I dropped my jacked and bag to the floor in the living room.  
We started downstairs. It took thirty minutes before we ascended the stairs to the upper levels. A shadow passed over Tyler's face as he crouched down in front of a white wall, where another cupboard was hidden. It was truly insane how many hidden cupboards, hollow panels and weirdly decorated saves Richard Lockwood had truly been the most paranoid person she'd ever met. I rubbed my hands together as I pushed the rug aside and revealed the even wooden panels. There was no hidden anything here and I was almost surprised. We were in the master bedroom. You'd think if there was one room you wanted secret loose panels hiding dark spaces full of money and weird rocks it was there and I dropped the rug back in place, moving to the small privet library Carol Lockwood loved so much. We'd searched through half of the house and I tucked my hair behind my ears. Straddling a richly-decorated chair and filed through another cabinet, shifted in my seat, rifled through the bookshelves and sighed in frustration when that too did not produce some weird voodoo rock.

It was rather surprising there was little method to the cataloging system, with Carol Lockwood in charge and I wondered if there was a witchy way to speed up the process. Possibly there was, yet, it was not known to me. Both Uncle John and Anna had come through with their promise to sent me a Grimoire and although I had learned a lot, I wasn't exactly good at it yet. A grimoire was often like a weird combination to a note and a cook book. Deciphering took time. Till now, I'd learned that day light rings were made from jewellery with a lapis lazuli stone spelled so that the supernaturals (mainly vampires) could walk in the sun, how to control and expand fires and how to create brain aneurysms; which sounded rather crafty against those pesky immortals.

Something toppled over in a room not too far from me and I straightened up in the chair. "Tyler, you okay?"

"Oi," he yelled back and I shot up so fast the chair almost toppled over. I moved across the room and stepped out on the landing. I heard him rummaging around and I frowned.

"You got something?"

"Hell yeah, I think I got it!" He yelled and when he emerged, stumbling out of his father's second study, he grinned madly, waving something that caught the sunlight. The hallway smelled fusty and the floorboards creaked beneath my easy sneakers as I crossed the distance. He grinned at me, holding the stone out in triumph.

"Here you go, Baby-witch." He grinned and I grimaced.

"Remind me again why I told you?"

"Because you love me?" He said before his expression turned tight. "Do you think it is something supernatural as well?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "I don't know. I really don't know much about it. Only what Elena writes in her diary. And she writes her feelings, her fears, but she is not very detailed about events. I think she doesn't really want to remember all the details."

"And your witch books?"

"They're complicated. It would help if someone could explain the basics to me." I explained.

"Well, my dear student, magic is a complicated—"

"Shut up, Tyler," I snapped and he grinned. I snatched the stone out of his hand and held it out above my head trailing my thumb over the smooth surface. It was translucent, milky-coloured, flat and ovoid, looking a lot like a gemstone. "If it is something supernatural we should be able to find out."

"How?"

I grinned: "I've got two Grimoires." My grin faded. "But I do need some time. If it's not written in one of those, I'll need— well help? Not sure— there are a lot of magical drawings, potions and even objects. It's a bit hard. I just need more time."

"The last time you told me that, you went to England and hacked off your hair." He returned dryly and I rolled my eyes in slight irritation. He wasn't wrong of course, after my parents had died I'd seized the opportunity to get away from Mystic Falls. When arriving at the dreary dorm rooms I'd dropped of my possessions before cutting off all the hair below my chin in a sloppy bob. At least it had grown till it was now curling just beneath the line of my jaw.

"The last time I was upset and angry."

"Upset and angry are your trademark feelings."

"Very funny," I retorted half-heartedly and trailed my index finger over the stone. "It doesn't look like much though."

"Mason says he wants it for sentimental value."

"Must think you're stupid." I retorted and I munched on my lip. "I could ask Uncle John."

"Is that a good idea?"

I snorted: "Probably not, can I take this?"

"Oh, please do." He nodded and I yanked the napkin I'd used to wrap my sandwich in out of my pocket and tucked the stone in it before folding the napkin tightly around it, pushing it back in my pocket. "Let's go back outside. I think my uncle and mum could be back any minute and it would be less suspicious if we were outside."

"Good point," I agreed, collected my bag and jacket and, as we moved outside my phone started to buzz agitatedly in my back pocket. I reached for it as we continued outside and Tyler's lip quirked up in a smirk.

"Elena?" He asked as he held open the door and I nodded.

"Indeed," I agreed, "Hello?"

"Samantha, where are you?" Elena's voice demanded quivering and I stared at the device with a frown.

"What's with the judgy tone?" I asked dryly and I almost heard Elena overthink her next sentence. She knew I could react badly to her bossy I'm-the-older-sister-tone and I waited almost patiently.

"Are you all right?" Elena asked and I felt my fingers tighten around my phone.

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"Oh— well, I— ah, was worried. With Uncle John's attack and all." She stumbled and Tyler tried to convey his questions through his eyes. I shrugged my shoulders in response and sighed.

"I'm on my way home, okay, I was with Tyler." I finally settled on.

"Oh, good," she sighed gratefully.

"How was your trip?" I asked pleasantly and Tyler's eyebrows rose so high, they almost disappeared beneath his hairline.

"Oh, good," she repeated uncomfortably and I heard someone mumble something in the background. "I'll see you at home."

The line went death and I breathed out already irritated: "Elena truly thinks I'm an idiot. There is something wrong, of course, and she was checking if I was still alive. I'm almost regretting giving Jeremy my blessing to do a runner."

"Again, you're not one to judge."

"Not my point," I retorted dryly, "I mean that since Jeremy isn't there Elena averted her big-sister-attention to me. It's annoying. She didn't call me every day when I was in England and now, while I'm back she needs to know where I am at every second of the day."

"What trip?"

"I have no idea. Doing research together with Alaric. He's the History teacher isn't he?" I asked absentmindedly, frowning when I remembered I would be returning to my old school in a few days. "I think I overheard them talk about a woman named Isobel. Who's by the way Elena's mother."

"Seriously!"

"Yep," I agreed, popping the 'p', before crossing the gravel path towards my car. "I'll have to go home though. When Elena is upset, it's easier to just call defeat and listen to her. I'll see you later. I'll see if I can find out something about this silly stone. Try asking Mason again. You could mention something about the supernatural."

I plopped down behind the wheel, ignoring the tremble that ran down my spine and pursed my lips: "Although, if he is a—"

"Vampire-thing?" Tyler added helpfully and I nodded.

"We could raid his apartment." Tyler opted almost hopefully. "I mean, if there is something supernatural, or witchy or something entirely else, there might be prove at his home."

I pursed my lips at that. I seriously doubted Mason would tell us anything about his potential Supernaturalism and searching Tyler's home had already served us well, but—

"Doesn't he live in Florida?"

"Yep,"

"It's a long drive."

"With everything that's going on in this town, do you think they'll miss us?" Tyler asked dryly and I tapped my fingers against the wheel of my car.

"It's worth a shot. Let me think about it." I decided on and started the car. "I'll need to tell Jenna something, but I guess she won't be too difficult. I'll call you tonight and if I find something— Well, I'll call you then too."

I sped off quickly, ignoring the light jolt my stomach made when the gravel bled seamlessly into a dirt road and the Lockwood mansion was hidden behind the tall copse of trees. The ride home was almost pleasant and I listened to the Christina Angelera song, coming from the speakers. I shifted between gas and brake; the streets even busy before rush hour, and drove half a block on automatic pilot until I reached the familiar narrow street before my home. From inside of the house the faint sloppy, chortling laughter of Jenna and a male visitor greeted me. When I opened the front door slowly I also heard a soft twangy music playing coming from upstairs.

Ignoring the lovey-dovey back and forth between my aunt and what I assumed was Alaric Saltzman, and followed the music up the stairs. Her bedroom door was open, revealing her sitting cross-legged on her bed, flipping through a large, old leather-bound book. The pages were yellowed and I leant casually against the doorjamb, peering at the written words, yet, I couldn't read them.

"Hello," I greeted leisurely, "doing some extracurricular research?"

Elena squeaked and flushed before flapping the book shut. "Samantha!"

"Yep," I agreed, pointing at myself, "in the flesh. What got you so upset that you called me?"

"I wasn't upset," Elena muttered defensively and I rolled my eyes almost theatrically.

"Don't lie to me."

"Fine," she whispered tearily, "Stefan and I broke up."

I'd waited several moments for her to cough and tell me it was a joke. Counted each excruciating second and hoped desperately for something to happen, because I wasn't sure I could act horrified in her place for losing her Vampire boyfriend. When I finally found my voice again I stumbled uncharacteristically over my words: "I— oh, I'm sorry…"

Elena pouted unhappily and I slowly moved further into her bedroom, dropping down on her rickety desk chair. The large vanity was mum's birthday gift when Elena had turned fourteen and had started to have her period. I twirled a bottle of nail polish between my fingers and pulled one leg up against my chest, resting my chin on my knee.

"Also, Jeremy ran away," she admitted glumly and I averted my eyes.

"Yeah, I know."

"What do you mean you know?"

"Because Elena, Jeremy told me. Honestly, what happened between the two of you when I was gone?" I asked, thinking that would have been something I would have wanted to know.

Elena opened and closed her mouth like a fish and I scratched at the nicely healing marks on my throat. Her eyes followed the movement and she flushed a light pink before looking at her hands, laying uselessly on the book. "I— We had a minor disagreement. I'm— I'm sorry, Sam, perhaps— I really just need some time alone."

I sighed: "Sure, I'll be in my room."

I thought I heard something when I closed Elena's bedroom door behind me but moved towards my bedroom either way. Retrieving the Grimoires I now owned from my hidden bathroom tile storage (made by my father when I needed a place to hide my secrets away from my siblings, even though obviously both my parents knew of its existence), I locked the door and sat down on the toilet seat. The sooner I started to search for an answer, the sooner we could think of what to do.

_To be continued..._

* * *

**A/N: In the altered timeline, Richard Lockwood survived the fire, but he was drained to inch of his life, partly burned (because, why the fuck wouldn't John restart the fire or Bonnie have restarted it, taking the ceiling with her when she was at it) and saved only because Liz Forbes was called by Carol Lockwood. Either way, for now, remember he's still alive. He will have an important role later (*much later). As for Mason, well, I'm not sure what I'll do with him. I know what I will do with Florida though^^**

**And Samantha— well, she's still not a fan of the vampires…**

**Either way, I hope you've enjoyed this chapter! Let me know what you think.**


	6. Chapter 6, the Sun and the Moon

**A/N: And here is chapter six. And our junior detectives try to learn more about the Supernatural World. Wish them luck^^**

* * *

Chapter Six, **the Sun and the Moon**

_Augustus 23, 1869 _

**T**_he ritual of the '_Sun and Moon_', as Katherine explained it, is unnatural. The powers she is toying around with are wrong, strange. Moreover I detect a non-earnest intention from Katherine's behaviour. From the legends it is my believe it contains a curse which keeps Vampires from walking in the sun and enslaves the werewolves to the moon. Yet, if that is so, I do not understand why she hasn't asked me to break the curse? The magic needed to dismantle it, shouldn't be too difficult—_

_It is my believe breaking a curse like that would endanger human kind even more. Jonathan was right, I should not feel any pity for the beasts in human form that roam the earth and I certainly shouldn't have played my part in saving them in the tomb._

I grinned when I found the passage in Emily Bennett's Grimoire that morning and I enthusiastically called Tyler. He had obviously been deeply asleep and I heard him fumble around for several moments before he groaned.

"Do you have any idea what time it is?"

"Yes," I grinned, "Six-thirty, time to prepare your weekend bag for our road trip. Listen, I found something and you'll be happy."

"Roadtrip?"

"To Florida?" I asked dryly and for a moment it was silent.

"Right." He muttered. "Come get me at eight o'clock, I'll make sure I'll get Mason's key. He keeps them in his room— yawn— and Sam, tell me later. I— I'm super tired."

"Right—" I dryly retorted and the line went dead. Dropping my mobile phone on my pillow, I threw my feet over the edge of the bed, quickly dressed and started packing a weekend bag to take along. I made sure to pack several sets of underwear, two sets of pyjama's and my two favourite pair of jackets. The weather forecast predicted a warm day and washing my face I settled on a pair of cute high-waisted denim shorts and a paint-splattered tank top. I'd bought an extra power bank to make sure me and Tyler would be able to remain relying on Google maps when on the road. It would just be something I would do, taking the wrong road and instead of a two day drive, making it three. There was no-one in the kitchen when I trotted inside, and I was grateful. Penning down a note and plastering it on the toaster (Aunt Jenna loved her black-scalded toast in the morning), I fished the mini cooper's car keys out of the fruit bowl and quickly left the house, jumping down the steps of the porch.

The ride to Tyler's house was uneventful and parked the car just a little away from the manor, making sure no one, especially Carol Lockwood, would be able to see me. Tyler knew the place and all I had to do was wait.

For quite a while—

The sun shone brightly, sending auburn highlights through my dark curly hair and the sky was a cerulean blue. Spring had arrived and daffodils fluttered in the soft breeze. I had rolled the window of my mother's mini cooper down and peered outside through heavy-lidded eyes. The temperature was high enough that I'd thought I made a good call on wearing my paint-splattered tank top tucked in my favourite pair of dark-blue denim shorts. My denim bomber jacket lay haphazardly thrown on the backseat and my school bag was heavy with the two Grimoires I now owned.

"Yo, Gilbert."

I grinned, tilting my head up from my arm: "Finally awake, Tyler? I've been waiting for you for over an hour."

Tyler Lockwood threw his bag into the backseat before dropping into the front and grinned at me lewdly as I drummed my hands against the wheel. We waved at Carol Lockwood and I tucked my hair behind my ears, before pushing it back with a binder.

"Found something?"

"Yes," I agreed slowly.

"Well?"

"Sun and Moon Curse," I retorted, my fingers tightening around the wheel and I started the engine. "Apparently, that's a thing. From what I understand that's the curse placed on vampires and werewolves. Yes, werewolves are a thing and their curse or those on the vampires can be broken with the help of the stupid rock aka the Moonstone."

Tyler looked rather petulant: "What does the curse do?"

"Well, it seems to bind vampires to the night and insure that werewolves have to turn at the full moon, no control over their actions once they're turned." I explained and the mini cooper grumbled as I changed gears. I'd immersed myself completely in the supernatural world and had actually learnt a lot. The werewolves, however, were a bit tricky. People changing into beasts once a month was difficult to comprehend. Even so, we suspected Mason Lockwood to be one and armed with his home key (nicked by the smirking Tyler) we embarked on what Jeremy called a road trip.

"So if say Mason was a werewolf and he broke the sun and moon curse he would no longer be a werewolf?"

"No, I think it has more to with not having to change. They would be able to do so at will and be able to— well, control it, I suppose?"

I turned the car onto the empty side road near the forest. The trees crowded together at the edge of the asphalt and the sunlight filtered through the leaves, sending a scattered light over the car. Momentarily, I peered out the windows at the landscape swathed in the deep, green-tinted shadows. I wondered if somewhere in the vibrancy of the leaves, predators hid and quickly decided I didn't really wanted to know right now.

"What did you tell your sister?"

"Told Jenna I needed some time. Grumbled about Uncle John's existence and she thinks I'll be staying with you. I'm not sure why she would be cool with that, but then again, Aunt Jenna is practically a kid herself," I responded. "I won't be missed. Or at least, not as long as Elena won't start blabbing."

Changing gears, I quickened the car as the forest foliage bled into the busy highway. Tyler pushed his chair back until he lounged more comfortably. "This is going to be a long ride."

"Oh only thirteen hours." I responded dryly. "Well, at least this is probably a good way to get over my car phobia, as you called it."

"I'm guessing you already had a good start with cop car."

I grinned: "Don't think for a second I'm driving thirteen hours."

"Right—" Tyler mumbled irritably.

After four hours we changed seats and Tyler drove the next. Making a pitstop at Lumberton for food and a toilet break, before renting a small room in Jacksonville. The next morning, I drove the last four and a half hours to Florida. It took a small hour before I found Mason's apartment and sighed gratefully when we passed the sign to Mason's street, dangling from an overhanging branch on rusty chains, welcoming them to the neighbourhood. The landscape was different from Mystic Falls and beside the occasional tree, a small layer of sand covered the pavements and the street.

I frowned at the old buildings, consisting out of many concrete apartments. I wondered when summer hit, if the entire neighbourhood would be swarming with sun burnt tourists, dressed in shorts, summer dresses or swimsuits. Especially, if they could hire a cheap apartment or hotel room for the weekend. Cocking my head to the side I peered at Tyler: "I'd think your Uncle would live nicer?"

"Yeah—"

I parked the car at the edge of the parking lot and killed the engine. Tyler clambered out of the car and peered around and quickly followed after him. The air was heavy with the scent of the sea and in the distance I'd heard the waves crash against the chore. It was rather calmly: "What's his home number again?"

"Fourth floor, number 28."

"Lead the way,"

He rolled his eyes and after pressing on several doorbells, someone buzzed the door open and we moved inside, past the number of mailboxes and started to ascend the several flights of greenish stone stairs. The fourth-floor corridor was dim-lit and a large part was cloaked in shadow. We stopped in front of number 28 and after several times trying the lock and jangling the door-handle, the light wooden creaked open and we stepped out on the wooden landing. The apartment was small with a narrow hallway leading up to a warmly decorated living room with a singular toilet to the right and opposite was a little bedroom. I started in the living room while Tyler moved into the bedroom.

There was a large bookcase with well-read books. Several books had several pages marked by pen or dog-ears. I saw little evidence of anything supernatural (that is as long as you didn't count a book of Twilight and I spotted the Bram Stoker novel of Dracula). Most books went on about the best surfing ways or the best beaches, but there was a book about Werewolves (A Lycanthropy Reader; Werewolves in Wester Culture) and I noticed another about common poisons. It was hardly impressed but picked the book about common poisons from the shelve anyway and flicked through it. The book fell open on a page about the Aconitum plant (commonly known as Aconite, Monkshood or Wolfsbane). The names were circled with a bright yellow marker and the page had several dog-ears.

I cocked my head to the side and read swiftly over the words. Growing in well-drained soil of the mountain meadows, most species were know to be extremely poisonous— I sighed, slammed the book closed and set it back where I found it.

"This was not a good idea." I muttered and flipped quickly through the several magazines on the coffee table. Nothing usable, though and I crossed the living room and peered at the balcony. Opening the door with several small, glass windows I slowly stepped out it. It was a concrete ledge, with square rough edges with a rusty rail, yet the view was beautiful.  
The coastline was easily visible now and I leant my lower-arms on the balustrade watching the grey rock beach. There was little vegetation and even a littler amount of people. I curled my fingers around the wrought-iron banister and leant forward, craning my neck, trying to see even further.

"What are you doing?" Tyler's voice suddenly announced from beside me and only his hand grabbing me by the shoulders stopped my independent tumble over the balcony. When I found my balance again I shoved him irritable.

"Imbecile, what if I fell?"

"You did, but I caught you."

"Lucky me," I drawled dryly and sighed, grateful for not falling, "It is a nice view. Did you find something?"

He laughed hollowly: "No, not really. Well, I did find a built-in closet I can't open. I mean, I can hardly break the door down, now can I?"

"Suppose not," I agreed and followed him inside. The built-in closet was located in the small, simple bedroom and I crouched down before it. It was an old brusk golden lock and I pursed my lips. "If we'd have a bobby pin, I might be able to open it."

"You're the girl—"

"A sharp kitchen knife would work too." I returned dryly and he scurried out of the room, only to return seconds later, knife in hand.

"Fine, Madam, here you go."

"Thank you, good Sir," I answered playfully and accepted the knife. It must have been a meat knife as it was perfectly sharp and I slid it into the lock. I moved and pushed the teeth of the lock, until I heard it click. I turned to Tyler, grinning madly at him. Tyler gave me the thumbs-up and slipped past me into the darkened closet. I heard him rummage around and after a moment a swinging lamp above his head flickered on, zooming as if it found its use irritable. I peeked inside. It had several shelves, filled with records, papers and what looked like cd's and I watched Tyler rummage through a large stack of papers.

"And?"

"This is nothing," He said unamused and I moved inside as well. It was a little crowded but soon we had a rhythm going. He moved through the loose papers and I picked up book after book. Tyler was crouched down on the floor, pouring over loose and often yellowed papers and I leant back against a low shelf, flipping through the umpteenth book.

"I think I found something," Tyler piped up and I crouched down before him. Stashed between the pages of a book was a dried plant with blueish flowers.

"A flower?"

"It seems so," I agreed and as Tyler reached for it I slapped his hand away. "Don't touch it. It might be poisonous."

"I doubt it."

"I don't. He has a book about poisonous plants. I doubt they are for gardening purposes." I stated and set my bag at my feet, yanking out a plastic bag I'd used for my sandwich and he dropped it in. As he shook the book suddenly an USB flash drive dropped out of a hidden hole as well. We stared at it with wide eyes before Tyler snatched it off the floor.

"What do you think this is?"

"An USB flash drive," I commented dryly and he hit me harshly against my shoulder. I rubbed the smarting limb harshly before sitting down beside him. "Did you bring your computer?"

"Should I?"

"Probably, but I didn't bring mine either." I answered. "We could find ourselves an internet cafe. I'm sure they're on the route or somewhere in the ci—" I started only to be interrupted when we heard the front door click open. I gasped, gripped the closet door and pulled it closed with a soft click. Tyler sat frozen on the floor and I let my fingers slide across the wall, finding the light switch and flicked it. Somewhere in the apartment there's the patter of soft footsteps moving around and I clasped my hands over my mouth stifling my breathing. The steps moved closer, moved something in the bedroom and I felt Tyler's arm brush my leg. We heard the sound of someone shoving a drawer shut and I soundlessly felt around for something to fend a possible attacker off with, if necessary. There was no way Mason could have arrived here yet, besides, as far as he knew he still hadn't found the moon stone and moreover, why would he go and not try to say good bye to Tyler?

The shuffling on the other side stopped for a moment, the wooden boards creaked and then the bedroom door slammed closed. I inhaled gratefully.

I probably shouldn't have and suddenly the door to my and Tyler's hiding place was wrenched open and a Caucasian girl in her mid-twenties with blue eyes and medium-length blonde hair stood at the other side. She was dressed in simple tight-fitting jeans, a grey t-shirt and a dark leather jacket, arms crossed in front of her chest.

"My, my, two thieves." She stated softly and Tyler slowly jerked to a standing position. He, thank God was a lot taller than her, but something about her, felt off.

"W—we're not thieves. Obviously, you are. We had a key." I stated, hoping to bluff my way of out of this horrible situation. "Who the hell are you?"

"Then why were you hiding, Baby-girl?" She asked sarcastically.

Tyler snorted: "Yeah, why would we? We were expecting the place to be empty and certainly didn't want to be murdered by some nutcase."

I grimaced slightly at his phrase and slowly scrambled to my feet as well, the flash drive still in my hand. "Listen, we were her for Mason. Tyler here, is his nephew and I, my name is Sam, I'm his— girlfriend where her for a day. We needed a place to crash from our road trip and he told us it was okay to use his place. Gave us the keys in Mystic Falls and well, we were about to leave when he called. He needed something. Now who are you?"

"What did he need?"

"Hell no," I returned and the girl did a thin-lipped imperious nostril-flare thing and I mirrored her stance, "it's your turn to explain who the fuck you are and what you're doing here. We could call the cops if you'd like. Our Mason? I wonder what he'd say—"

"Jules," she offered slowly. "I'm a friend of Mason and I take care of the cat when he's away."

"Mason has a cat?" Tyler asked in surprise and I gave him a look that if looks could kill he would be death.

"Now tell me again, what did Mason need?" She asked happily.

"Oh," I answered as pleasant as I could and opened my bag, subtly dropping the flash drive inside and pulled the plastic bag with the plant inside. "He needed the— Aconite. I assume you know why?"

"Oh God, but the full moon is in two days." She whispered horrified and I nodded sympathetically.

"Yes, exactly."

"But you're not one." She coldly whispered and I nodded and I concentrated, my eyes narrowing. The girl gasped both hands grabbing for her head and she whimpered.

"I'm a witch." I stated proudly and dropped the spell. She breathed heavily and glared at me but I only shrugged. "I'm sorry, but I think we do need to set some boundaries. Obviously Mason failed to mention a few details both to you and to us, but if we don't start going back we're late."

"I am probably faster."

"I'm sure, but it's not the best town to be at right now."

"Vampires." Tyler stated. "Pesky little things."

"I don't think I can cloak more Werewolves than I already do." I stated, having no idea if I could even cloak anything in the first place. "Besides, we really need to go. It was wonderful to meet you. We could tell him you said hi?"

"Right," she whispered, eyes narrowed and I gripped Tyler's wrist and dragged him around her. We almost ran out of the apartment, slamming the door behind us and I breathed out heavily when we stumbled out of the building and on the sandy pavement. The sun had sunken towards the tree and coloured the sky a dark crimson; burned red of the descending sun, while dark clouds billowing along the horizon.

"Let's get out of here!" Tyler muttered and I quickly unlocked my car. I spotted Jules standing on the balcony and I waved slowly at her before getting behind the wheel. I only dare to breath normally when we're on the asphalt road again, leading to the high way.

"Do you think she bought that?"

"Well," he answered slowly, "I don't think it matters. I certainly didn't buy her excuse. I think she was looking something as well."

"Let's hope so."

"Why?" He asked slowly and I met his gaze reluctantly.

"Because if she is there without invitation she can't very well call Mason and inform him of our activities, right?"

He groaned, dropping his head in his hands: "Shit, if she does call him, I'm dead. Why did you use our real names?"

"Because the best way to lie, is to tell a large amount of the truth." I admitted and he nodded in understanding.

I snorted: "Well, we did find what we came for."

"The flash drive?" Tyler sarcastically asked and I rolled my eyes.

"No, the knowledge that Mason is a Werewolf. It was obvious from the what Jules said." I explained and curled my fingers tightly around the wheel. "However, that did not explain how on becomes a Werewolf."

"And if I might be one."

"If you are one then it must be something buried in your DNA and not something you can catch." I said. "I think it must be like that, because your dad was affected by the device as well. Else I don't know why the police would lock him into the cellar. The only thing I know for sure it that it's known as a curse. And it must be for a reason."

"I suppose," he agreed and we fell in a hushed silence. It was a long way back.

_To be continued..._

* * *

**A/N: Like always, leave a review. It helps an author along and I really like to know what works well and what doesn't in my writing^^**


	7. Chapter 7, The Werewolf

**A/N: Hello Everyone! I wanted to thank everyone who took the time to review, save this story and read it^^ **

**As to address a question I received (and I thought was important), I'd like to answer it here as well. The question was about Sam and practicing magic in the future (see how she struggles and where her strengths lie, I guess); Yes, we will see Samantha practice and try out new magic. However, to set up the story, it will go slowly. As much as I would like for Samantha to become a good witch in three chapters; that's not going to happen. She will fuck up a lot of times... Even without knowing. And yes, her way of doing magic right now is more instinctively.**

**Enjoy the next chapter**

* * *

Chapter Seven, **The Werewolf**

**M**y bare toes pressed harshly into the soft rug beneath my feet as I pressed my thumb harshly against the controller. My heart was beating fast as my avatar passed Tyler's (who now once again practically lived in the Gilbert house) and I grinned in victory. The silly video game we decided to play was bringing out our competitive sides and he grumbled when I threw an ink bomb behind me. Tyler's ears tinted with just a touch of pink when I drove over the finish line for the second time. I was in first place, having chosen Yoshi as my golden ticket and grinned manically. In the kitchen Jenna and Alaric were making preparations for dinner, or more accurately were happily making out and I was glad Tyler was there with me to help me through it.

Or more accurately, I was there helping him through the knowledge that he might be indeed part Werewolf. We still didn't know for sure, but after seeing the flash drive we thought he was. He'd been horrified when we finally watched the contents on the Flash drive two days ago. On it was a movie of Mason's transformation (he truly was a Werewolf) and it had been horrible. The screams, the way his body writhed on the ground and his eyes rolled into the back of his head, it had left me feeling rather nauseous. It still made me nauseous when I thought about it and suddenly Tyler snickered. His Mario had just bypassed my Yoshi and I gave him an irritate look. He had an odd way working through his problems.

"Guys?" Aunt Jenna came in from the kitchen, looking rather pallid and I frowned.

"Something wrong?" I asked slowly, my eyes narrowing when my avatar got hit by lightning and shrunk until he was the size of an ant. I grumbled under my breath, aiming to let Tyler bite the dust more seriously and grinned when I acquired super-speed. Mario Kart was wonderful.

"I need— I need to see my thesis supervisor." Jenna whispered looking like somehow she had ought to know that, but hadn't written it down anywhere. "He just called."

"Well," I retorted, "then you go and see him."

"Alaric wants to do some grocery shopping." She told me seriously and I paused the game, ignoring Tyler's complaint and stared up at my aunt with a frown. I understood the implications a moment later.

"I won't leave the house, Aunt Jenna." I told her solemnly. "I will stay in."

"You better do," Jenna told me threateningly and I was quite proud at myself for not rolling my eyes at her parent-behaviour. My aunt didn't notice my amusement and turned towards Alaric. He was holding a large folded shopping bag under his arm, smiling at Jenna. I thought he was amused by the display as well. After our five-day-long disappearance, aunt Jenna had been sure a good grounding was in order. I on the other end knew she wouldn't keep to it.

"Good luck," Alaric grinned at me and turned to Jenna, running his hand along her cheek and settled it on the back of her neck.

I glared at them with a faux-glare: "If you two are going to exchange saliva, don't do it in front of us."

"We're innocents." Tyler piped up, dropping his controller on the couch with a flair I found rather amusing.

Jenna gave me a look and she and Alaric moved their 'lovey-dovey goodbye saying' to the entrance hall and after I heard the obvious sounds of kissing, I exchanged a disgusted look with Tyler. It continued for several more minutes and I curled my legs up under my chin.

"Drive safe," Aunt Jenna said warmly, almost five minutes later, and they kissed again, for the umpteenth time. Tyler turned to me with a frown and I grimaced. When we heard Jenna whisper and cluck her tongue at her boyfriend as if Alaric Saltzman was a cute toddler on his first day of school, I felt my last resolve break.

"Bye Alaric!" I yelled loudly and grabbled for the remote control and turned the radio on, turning the volume of the music up and Tyler gave the most disgusted expression he could muster. I nodded in agreement and pulled my left leg under my right: "Bye Aunt Jenna!"

"Bye, Sweetheart!" Aunt Jenna greeted happily and I sighed thankfully when the door closed with a thud. Dull grey light filtered in through the windows and I waited several minutes before I yanked the pods out of my ears and moved closer to Tyler.

"I thought she'd never leave." Tyler whispered and I nodded in agreement. "Where are they both going anyway? I mean I'm happy they're gone and your sister being wherever she's supposed to be, but—"

"I think Alaric has a date with Damon and Aunt Jenna needs to meet with her thesis supervisor. I swear that thesis of hers is never going to be finished."

"Right, Damon…"

"I know—"

"I'm not sure what's up with Elena at the moment, though. She and Stefan are supposedly on a break— and believe me she didn't even put me through one of her third-degree lectures when I came home after five days of absence, but I'm pretty sure she had a male friend over this morning. Oh, yes, and Bonnie and Caroline are fighting for some reason. Well, at least Jeremy is happy. Anna took him to Europe."

"What if I trigger it?" Tyler whispered. "What if I do something that will wake the curse inside of me?"

"That can only happen when we know how you do so."

"Fine," Tyler rushed out, "we should learn how to avoid it. Happy now?"

"No," I muttered and I rubbed my hands over my face, "but, I can promise you, they don't know either. I managed to read Elena's last diary entries, but she stowed her diary somewhere else and I haven't found it yet."

The doorbell rung suddenly, shrilly and grating and I sighed: "Dear Lord, she forgot her keys, again."

When I opened the front door, it wasn't Jenna standing on the porch. Instead, a young man stood in front of me. He was muscular, and had a slim, athletic build to him. He had short, dark blond hair with blue eyes and was quite a bit taller than me. I cocked my head to the side and frowned, thinking he looked familiar but I couldn't place him.

"Erm, can I help you?"

"Hello, Samantha," the man greeted, "Long time no see."

"Ah— Mason," I whispered closing my eyes for a second and pressing my lips together. "That's great. How— how are you?"

Would it be horrible if I threw the door closed in his face? I breathed out slowly, but before I could make up my mind he shouldered his way inside, kicked the door closed with his foot and grabbed me by the shoulder steering me back into the living room. Tyler, who'd been lounging on the sofa stiffened before straightening in his seat and Mason pushed me back next to him, while he sat down on the edge of the coffee table.

"I can't believe you two!" He snapped irritably and I watched him wide-eyed as he ran a hand through his hair. "Going up to my apartment. What if something had happened? Did that possibility even occur to the two of you? What if Jules would have gone on the offensive? You two were after all trespassing."

"I'm sure that's the absolute worst thing you can do, with what? A town filled with Vampires and Werewolves?" I asked dryly.

"You two didn't even bother to show up for the preparations for the charity masquerade. I had to lie to your mother, Tyler." He admonished them and Tyler snorted.

"When do we ever show up for things like that?" He asked sarcastically.

"And besides," I added, "If people would start being honest with us for once we wouldn't have to play detective. If people stopped acting like we can't handle the truth none of this would have been necessary. Acting like we're stupid is not going to help you in any way."

Mason peered at me with a frown and Tyler glared at him: "I have my reasons for being secretive."

"Really, and look where that got you?" I asked irritably and he snorted.

"Says the little witch."

"Well— I suppose that couldn't stay a secret anymore than your lycanthropy could." I stated and narrowed my eyes. I could give him an aneurism he wouldn't forget anytime soon and he steepled his fingers together, pushing them to his lips.

"Fine," he conceded, "what do you two want to know?"

"Am I one?" Tyler rushed out and Mason closed his eyes as if he was in agony. His face blanched slightly and watched his nephew as if the vision physically hurt him.

"No," he finally stated, "but you're—"

"It's in his DNA isn't it?" I asked and Mason nodded.

"How do you trigger it?" Tyler demanded and Mason shook his head.

"You can't know. If you know— You'll not be capable to think of anything else once you know." He tried reasonable and Tyler jumped to his feet, fury flushing his face pink.

"Fuck you!" He snapped, "What do you think I'll be thinking about if I don't know? How am I supposed to avoid it when I don't know what causes the curse?"

"You have to kill someone, Tyler!" Mason snapped, getting to his feet as well and Tyler backed down slightly.

"What?"

"Happy now?"

"You killed someone?" I asked and Mason's face paled even more and the pillows of the couch dipped when Tyler flopped back down, his face blanched and his lips turning whither by the second. I had to intervene and with an air of coolness I did not feel, I crossed my legs and and smiled watery. "You don't really seem to be the type to be a cold-blooded killer?"

And if he was, I would protect my own. To regain and keep balance to nature was a witch's primary duty. I felt quite sure all supernaturals fell in the category 'out of balance' (even if they deserved a chance at life as everything else did), and I slowly dug my nails into the palms of my hands. Controlling the rising of my power with an exercise of even breathing. It worked well enough, I suppose.

"It was an accident," Mason admitted and Tyler's eyes were glued to his uncle with the sort of vehemence I worried would make him do something stupid. Normally, I wasn't one to judge doing stupid things, but even I had limits and slowly I reached out to him. He flinched slightly when my hand touched his shoulder and I tried (and failed) to smile.

"Ty?"

"I'd hoped you would tell me it wasn't in my DNA." He admitted slowly and I nodded before looking at Mason again. There was a fresh pain there that made the hairs on my arms and legs stand on end.

"It is," Mason agreed solemnly, "but it lies dormant until you cause someone's death."

"So basically if you kill someone," I concluded.

"Basically if you are responsible for someone's death. Genetics don't care if you meant to or not." He whispered and I turned to Tyler again. Most people went without ever killing anyone. Tyler stared at me his face an open book to me and we traded looks, all with meaning. He was scared and I thought everything should be fine. Or I hoped. Mason's eyes were flitting between me and Tyler with the sort of urgency I'd seen countless times before, but this time without the judgement. It was rather refreshing and I shifted in my east, curling both of my feet under me.

"You're only friends right?"

"Yes," I agreed, "since kindergarten."

"You were in kindergarten," Tyler absentmindedly corrected and I shrugged uncaringly.

Mason smiled: "I used to be close to your aunt."

"Oh?" I asked and cocked my head to the side. Aunt Jenna rarely spoke about her high school period, but when she did she had never mentioned Mason before. "What happened?"

"We drifted apart."

"Pity," I whispered and I realised belatedly I actually meant it. Mason seemed nice enough and I didn't really get a bad vibe from him either. If anything he often looked like he was in some kind of pain and I pursed my lips. "Why are you really here? In Mystic Falls I mean? I know your brother is in hospital but—"

"Because of the Moo— the rock." Tyler said seriously and Mason stiffened.

"You know about the Moonstone." He stated. It was definitely not a question and I gave him a dirty look. After that statement I didn't think lying would help us any further and I bit my lip hard.

"Yes," Tyler admitted and I met his unasked question with a look of worry. If he knew we had it, he'd want it. It wasn't hard to guess why.

"You have it." Mason concluded and I entertained my fingers into my lap.

"Why do you want it?" I asked and sat up straighter. Of course, him breaking the curse made sense, but it was a difficult curse. Not one you just broke because you got sick of it. He would need many elements and even I did not know them all.

"Because I want the curse broken." He stated looking at me as if I was slow-minded.

"To change at will?"

"No," he returned irritably, "to not change at all."

"How will you do that?" I asked and Tyler's eyes flitted between us as if following a difficult tennis match. "Because this curse is way more difficult than any I've seen so far."

"My— girlfriend has a way."

"You have a girlfriend?" Tyler quaffed. "You?"

"Right," Mason muttered, "the two of you have pushed me to my limits. Can I please have it?"

Tyler peered at me curiously and I sighed, jerking myself to a standing position: "Fine."

I quickly ascended the stairs, up to my room and returned moments later with the stone fisted tightly between my fingers. Mason had gotten to his feet as well, his eyes wide in what I thought looked like child-like wonder. He accepted it without even a moment of hesitance and briefly my fingers touched his hand. It was unexpected, my breath hitched. An image flashed before my eyes and I stumbled back, almost tripping over the coffee table. Mason didn't really notice, too caught up in his staring contest with the Moonstone and without another word, he marched out of the door.

"Sam?" Tyler whispered.

"I saw Elena," I mumbled, "All but naked. He— your uncle, he was kissing her."

"What?"

"I— I saw her!" I whispered and I met his eyes with my wider ones.

"That can't be—"

I shook my head, unsure what I should do. Oh God, what I had done. "Katherine. Elena's evil twin. She's— I think—"

"You make zero sense!" He retorted and I shook my head.

"He's with Katherine. She's— she's a psycho."

"Wait you mean the crazy bitch who tried to kill your uncle?"

"You've got it in one."

"Ty, I think I did something incredibly stupid." I whispered and he sped to the front door. I followed after him quickly. "Where are you going?"

"Going to find him, obviously!" He stated and turned to me. "You stay here!"

I opened my mouth to disagree but before I could say anything he slammed the door into my face and when I managed to open it again, he was gone…

_To be continued…_

* * *

**A/N****: As people probably have noticed, I like my characters with shades of grey. I like "anti-heroes" and "anti-villains" or even traditional heroes going darker, but I find hypocrisy sometimes hard to stand (which doesn't mean, my characters won't be little hypocrites; oh, when necessary they will; but there will be a limit to it). It's why I find Elena's actions sometimes hard to swallow (especially in season 4) and Sam is not always going to take well to it. However, it won't be the most important part to the story!**

**On another note, I'm very glad The Worst Witch is received so well and as always your comments absolutely make my day! **

**Next update around upcoming Sunday-Monday; feel free to leave me your thoughts. ****Either way Enjoy!**


	8. Chapter 8, The Masquerade Ball

**Chapter eight: Late and I am sorry for that. I had it ready to go months ago, but I hadn't reread it to make sure there's only the bare minimum of weird mistakes. On a different note, thank you for your comments and support. Your words encouragement mean the world to me. I hope you all enjoy the newest chapter. I will be updating this fic regularly again. Next update: Thursday, June the twenty-first. **

* * *

o.O.o

* * *

Chapter Eight, **The Masquerade Ball**

**T**he vaulted ceiling of the Lockwood ballroom was enchanted by the flickering lights of the large chandelier, and the low-lit hallway leading up to it was filled with happy conversing people.

The room was furnished in a manner that was both grand and oppressive at the same time. I trudged inside with a grim expression, most of which was hidden behind the pretty dark mask I wore.

I'd worn a black dress I'd borrowed from Aunt Jenna and although it looked pretty enough it itched too.

I wasn't entirely sure what was going on, but something was. I'd noticed it from the way Damon and Alaric had been acting when they were at my home somehow keeping Elena out of the loop and I'd made the split-decision to come too.

I suppose it was a jerk move to leave Elena to take care of Aunt Jenna, who'd somehow stabbed herself in the abdomen, but I was seriously getting tired of being lied to, of being kept out of the loop.

Especially, since Elena had 'officially' broken up with Stefan. That much had been quite obvious when she returned cheeks flushed and eyes red-rimmed two days ago.

I'd not been able to figure out what exactly happened, but I had overheard Alaric on the phone with Damon and I thought that it might have something to do with Katherine Pierce. Katherine— Elena's evil twin was probably scheming someone's demise and although that alone was worrisome, I needed to see Tyler.

If Katherine and Mason were truly canoodling (even thinking the word made me inwardly cringe), how safe would Tyler be confronting his uncle?

I shook my head, took a vol-au-vent from a large platter and chewed on it thoughtfully. I'd found no trace of Tyler yet and moved across the room and out of the terrace doors, fingering my earrings.

My hair had grown enough to reach now halfway down my neck and I'd chosen warm white pearl earrings that had once been my Mum's.

They went rather well with my complexion and I thought I looked nice. Considering the open-mouthed stares I'd received I'd also made many people realise that I was indeed a girl and it made me feel rather good about myself.

Even if I would probably never again put this much effort in my appearance. I wasn't sure what charity the Lockwoods were helping trowing a masquerade ball this size for, but I would have to admit it was beautifully done, even though I doubted much money would remain with all the expenses that would need to be covered.

I took another vol-au-vent and let my eyes glide over the people. I doubted Tyler would have let his mother persuade him to wear a mask and again I started to feel nervous. Even if Mason had done nothing to him, I knew the werewolf stories drove him mad.

I understood he hated the idea of him being one and anything that was linked to it, but he couldn't just run out on me and then not return any of my calls.

Part of hoped he'd just been dodging my calls because he didn't know how to deal with the supernatural world. Another part of me hoped he wasn't — no matter how selfish it was — because— I didn't want to analyse that feeling too closely.

I rubbed my hands together, peering around the yard. The Lockwoods rarely threw underrated parties, but at least this one was, for their doing relatively small.

However, with so many faces hidden behind masks, I didn't even recognise half of the people, quite possibly not recognising Tyler's usual crowd either. Accepting a flute of champagne from a sickly-looking waiter, I blew a lock of loose hair out of my face. I scratched my index finger along the side of the mask and stepped out in the garden. For a moment I was content watching the clouds gather in front of the small sliver of the moon that was visible in the sky.

Tendrils of smoke came from the candles on the table opposite of me and music played softly, people swaying along. It was not my scene and even worse, there was no sign of Tyler. My eyes widened when I suddenly recognised Elena and Stefan dancing, rather aggressively holding on to each other and I almost dropped my purse.

I'd been sure she hadn't been planning on coming and I stared at them a few moments longer when I realised.

That was not Elena. Katherine was dressed in a figure-hugging black dress, the hem richly decorated with lace, and had a dark butterfly-shaped mask on. Taking a sip from my champagne, I carefully inched closer, even going as far as accepting a dance from a man twice my age.

His dancing was a bit off, but I didn't mind it too much as he kept any lewd commentary to himself. He twirled me clumsily and I focused on Stefan and Katherine's conversation.

Stefan was now holding a rather serene looking Aimee Bradley against his chest while Katherine's stance had become derisive.

"Bring me the moonstone, Stefan." She hissed, "Or more people will die."

I frowned at that, unsure why she and Mason didn't have the stone but had little time to wonder about it. I gasped when my dance partner jerked me back and around. He was a bit tipsy, I realised belatedly as he twirled me around and lost his grip on my hand.

I stumbled back, my arms flailing and I bumped into a shocked Elena-look-a-like. I would have probably been able to downplay bumping into her, sneaking away as fast as possible, but as I tried doing just that my bracelet got jagged into her long dark hair.

"Sorry," my dance partner unapologetically muttered and, while taking a flute of champagne from a passing waiter, he drunkenly stumbled away.

I forgot myself then, for a moment: "What the fuck, dude? What the actual fuck!"

Katherine grumbled from beside me and her hand wrapped tightly around my wrist. Panic surged through me and I turned half towards her, catching the lock that had snatched through the pears of my mum's bracelet. Katherine moved again and I winced slightly: "Stop moving Elena! If you don't I'll yank out some of your hair!"

"If you dare—"

"Not on purpose," I huffed scandalised and I felt Stefan brush against me, wordlessly warning Katherine, although that did little to ease my nerves. Katherine loosened her grip on my wrist and I ignored the murderous aura that surrounded her. The moment I'd managed to tease her hair free from my bracelet, I would be out of there. When I finally managed, I stepped back waved to both of them and made a beeline for the Lockwoods' ballroom.

"Hey, where do you think—" Katherine snapped but as I dared a look over my shoulder I noticed Stefan gripping her wrist, stopping her pursue of me. I'd never been more thankful to him then at that moment and I thundered inside, almost running Carol Lockwood (dressed in something that was a tad too revealing) over in my haste to getaway.

"Samantha Gilbert!" She seethed and I almost considered turning back to face Katherine's wrath.

"Oh, hello— I was looking for Tyler," I answered lamely and Mrs Lockwood's nostrils flared.

"Of course, you were." She muttered looking at me the way she had when I and Tyler had thrown over a bucket full of paint when I'd been six-years-old.

I vaguely remembered we'd been arguing about the colour on a joint drawing when I had moved around too quickly and kicked it over. However, it had been Tyler who'd spread it out over the wood and they'd started creating a dragon. It had stained a large part of the rug too and Mrs Lockwood had been furious.

Drawing her fingers in circles over her temples, she waved dismissively to her husband's office and moved away, leaving me to myself. I breathed out sharply. Another waiter passed me and I eyed the flutes filled with expensive champagne.

I shook my head and smoothed my hair behind my ear, crossing the room, when suddenly the office door slammed open. I spotted Sarah Carson coming out, dressed in a black glittery dress, and followed closely by Matt— and finally, Tyler appeared. Although looking somewhat pallid, otherwise he seemed healthy enough and I felt my face flush.

"Tyler!" I snapped and grabbed hold of his upper arm. "Why haven't you been returning my messages?"

"Oh," he retorted rather dumbly and I narrowed my eyes at him. I must have given him an expression that told him I would pummel him because he proceeded in holding his hands up slowly. "I— I just had a lot on my mind. There was some progress with my dad, but in the end, he didn't wake up anyway."

"Oh," I whispered, biting my lower-lip aggressively, "how's Mason?"

"I have no idea." He muttered before leaning into my ear. "Would you be willing to do some witchy hocus pocus to find out?"

"Uh, perhaps with some personal belongings I can find him? But it's more likely that I set you on fire instead."

Tyler snorted: "I know where the fucker is. He went back to Florida."

I frowned, my nose scrunching up in thought: "That's odd."

"Believe me, it's not. He got what he came for. Gave me the creeps with his Wolf story and did a runner. He's good at that."

"Then why is Katherine still here?" I asked, inching on my tiptoes to see if I could spot the girl that looked too much like Elena. "I just bumped into her."

"I don't know. Perhaps Uncle Mason and the vampire bitch fought?"

I inclined my head: "I suppose. That's a possibility."

"I'm sorry. I know you were a bit frantic."

I crossed my arms over my chest: "That's why you didn't call, isn't it? You feared the mama-bear treatment?"

He ran a hand through his hair: "You want a drink?"

"Desperately." I agreed and pulled the mask off my face.

I followed Tyler back to his father's study. Matt had taken a seat behind the grand mahogany desk, holding a bottle of Tequila and Sarah was swaying to a music-only audible to her. Snatching the bottle from Matt ('hey'), I huddled up in the window seat and took a large swig. It burned down my throat most satisfyingly and I ran my thumb distractedly down the neck of the bottle. Matt had gotten to his feet, waltzing along the old wooden floorboards and Sarah had found another bottle but I thought that one looked more like scotch and she held it out to Matt. I was quite glad because I didn't want to share my nice bottle of Tequila and took another swig. Tyler had different plans, leaning heavily against my right leg and holding his hand out.

"Why can't you take the nice scotch?" I asked, pursing my lips.

"Because I want the nice Tequila more," he answered simply and I allowed him to take it, draping one arm around his shoulders and leaning my chin on his head.

"How much did Matt have?" I asked because Matt Donovan's face was flushed and his pupils were blown. I had never really seen Matt drunk, never hanging with him despite being both Tyler's friends and as he drank heartily from his bottle I poked Tyler's cheek.

"Not that much," Tyler said, taking another swig. "Well, by now quite much I suppose. He's making up for it."

"Don't you think we should—" I started as Matt unscrewed the lid of the second bottle of scotch and almost tripped over his own feet, looking comically at us as if we'd caught him doing the dirty with my sister (which horrifyingly enough had happened before). Sarah had stopped dancing, right hand wrapped around the edge of the desk and she was blinking profusely.

"Where did Amy go?" She suddenly piped up and I vaguely remembered Stefan Salvatore holding Amy Bradley half an hour ago or so and I vaguely waved my hand in the direction of the window.

"Saw her outside," I stated and reached for the Tequila bottle again. "I think she was drunk."

"Like me," Matt decided and I nodded, completely agreeing with him but I flinched when he turned the bottle upside down. Amber liquid pouring over the floor, darkening the rug and Tyler pressed his bottle back in my hands.

"Oi, Matt, don't do that!" Tyler snapped, but Matt swirled around, staggering on his feet emptying most of the bottle on the floor.

"What?" Matt grinned, the lid back on the bottle, "It's a party!"

"Matt!" I started, throwing my legs over the edge of the windowsill and frowning as he threw a leering look at me. I'd never known him to be interested in me and his lips quirked.

"What? Didn't you used to like a party?" He grinned, fingering the picture frame on the desk.

That wasn't entirely untrue. Everyone knew my tendency to get into serious trouble and I inhaled, massaging my fingers across my temples.

"Yes, but spilling alcohol on a floor is not a party. I think you have enough. There is such a thing as a bad drunk."

Matt shrugged and picked the picture up from the desk: "A bad drunk… I know another bad drunk, right dad?"

"Matt!" I hissed and I jumped off the window sill but Tyler grabbed my upper arm tightly, his eyes narrowed.

"You know," Matt continued, unscrewed the lid with his thumb. "It looks like your dad wants a drink too!"

I stiffened and inhaled sharply, a jolt of shock hitting my stomach when he poured the alcohol over the frame.

"C'mon, you're being mean. His dad's in the hospital!" Sarah told Matt slowly, eyes flitting from Tyler to Matt and back again as if she was following a tennis match.

I had enough and wrenched my arm free from Tyler's tightening grip, took the three steps separating me and Matt and snatched the bottle from his hands with a glare my older sister would have been proud of.

"That's quite enough."

"Why?" Matt grinned and I had never seen him behave like this. "Everyone knows his father is a dick." And with that, he shoved me harshly. I stumbled backwards, bumping into Sarah and Tyler took a threatening step towards him.

"What's wrong with you?" Tyler hissed, reaching for the family picture of his parents, "Gimme the picture!"

Matt wasn't done and twirled out of Tyler's reach, slapping Tyler's cheek with the other hand: "Remember how your dad used to slap you around?"

"Are you kidding?"

"Just having fun," Matt smirked horribly. I'd never seen that expression on his face.

"Put the picture down man!"

Matt, however, smashed the photo onto the desk, glass tinkling and flying around in little glittery pieces.

I could only just stare in enraged surprise and Tyler stepped forward gripping Matt by the shoulders: "That's it! You have to calm your drunk ass down!"

Matt shoved him away: "Then do something about it!"

"What the hell is wrong with you, Matt?" I demanded. It was like he was purposely trying to aggravate Tyler even though I had no idea why.

Why ever, it was working, because Tyler's jaw tightened and suddenly I was hit by a painful realisation. He was not acting like himself at all. I wondered if this was how people acted when they were compelled.

"Tyler—" I started slowly but Matt surged forward, slamming into Tyler and they toppled over the floor.

Matt had never seemed the fighter to me, but he sure managed to put a few good hits in, Tyler's face snapping to the side from the force. I marched forward, energy rippling through me and Matt surged backwards.

I pressed my lips tightly together, hoping it had looked as if I'd pushed him back, and threw an apologetic glance at Tyler's tense face. The office door slammed open and Caroline Forbes appeared, her eyes wide and her mouth open.

"What's going on here?" She demanded,

He looked at Matt's slumped body, eyeing his chest, rising and falling evenly: "Well, at least you knocked him out."

"Matt failed," Sarah whispered from behind me and I slowly turned to her. "Matt failed so I cannot."

Horror curled in my belly, but it did not prepare me for the way Sarah's face had hardened in tight lines.

I wondered if this might be a compulsion as well. The robotic voice, the strange glint to her eyes, the way— her fingers had grasped a letter opener.

She lurched, throwing herself towards me, towards Tyler, who'd managed to get to his feet. She marched forward and another ripple went through me— but Tyler's arm wrapped around my waist and yanked me off my feet.

It all happened so fast, my hair flailing across my vision and a sharp pain shooting up my shoulder. Tyler growled and I dropped to the floor with a gasp while Sarah fell to the other side, hitting the floor with an almost sickening crunch.

I had frozen, absentmindedly aware of warm liquid running down my arm and dripping on the floor.

Tyler stood frozen to my right, a step or so before me and Sarah lay unmoving on her back, her head angled away from my field of vision. Dread surged through me when I failed to see the steady rise and fall of _her_ chest.

"Is she—" I started, my voice high and squeaky and only then did I realise I had been holding my breath, the trapped air slipping past my lips in a terrified wheeze.

"No, no, no! Come on, wake up, please, wake up." Tyler dropped on his knees, crawling to her side and desperately shook her. "Sarah! Sarah, open your eyes! Come on, wake up."

Of course, she didn't and I struggled to my feet, my hand finding the cut at my shoulder. It was bleeding profusely and I let my eyes flit to a stricken looking Caroline.

Her eyes followed the steady trail of blood running down my arm and I swallowed. I didn't know what I should do.

Tyler was still shaking Sarah, denying that she was indeed not breathing and Caroline was eyeing my arm as if I was a refreshing glass of water while she was a dehydrated camper, lost in the desert. I realised now why Elena had been so worried about Caroline.

She was a vampire too.

Stamping down on the quickly gathering nausea and worry, I moved closer to Tyler, but my best friend was unapproachable, batting me away when I tried to lay a hand on his shoulder.

He was extremely upset (justified of course) and Caroline shouldered her way past me. Her face was tense and she did not look at me again, reaching out to Tyler.

"GET AWAY!"

We both jumped at the tone of his voice, but Caroline seemed determined to ignore the warning fury colouring his tone: "Tyler!"

His head snapped up. His eyes... they were golden and I inhaled sharply.

At that moment I was so glad Caroline was here because I wouldn't have known what to do. She, obviously a vampire now, began reorganising the place, pressing the Scotch bottle against Sarah's hand before leaving it there.

In moments I was left repeating a story of her fabrication; how Sarah was starting to get drunk and accidentally fell. Once the room was set to perfection (Caroline nodded to herself), Caroline found Tyler's mom and me, ignoring Tyler's stricken face, sat down next to him, wrapping my arm tightly around his shoulders.

"Everything is going to be okay!"

"How is anything ever going to be okay again?" He whispered back and I pressed my lips tightly together, not knowing how to answer that.

Carol Lockwood had just entered the office, her eyes widened and I wasn't sure if I should be slightly or incredible offended when her eyes momentarily wouldn't swerve from mine (as I was often the anchor of trouble) before her face blanched off colour.

Caroline played out her bullshit story of Sarah tripping whilst drunk in amazing detail and I couldn't do anything else than nod along. What else was I supposed to do?

When Liz Forbes arrived I staggered away to the bathroom. I took a shuddering breath before flicking the light switch, bathing me in the led light that made everyone's skin look so horrible.

My breathing came in hard, heavy pants, and I felt that same horrifying fear run through me. The same I'd felt after my parents died. Quite a non-proverbial panic attack. Tears feel in earnest and I ground my teeth together.

The lightbulb above my head buzzed loudly and slowly I looked at the reflection of my face in the bathroom mirror. The make-up I had so carefully applied had streaked, the mascara leaving a fine black line running down my flushed cheeks.

After a few minutes of heavy breathing, I managed to regain some control over my jittery heartbeat, yet I did not feel particularly calm.

Liz Forbes was taking statements of Tyler and Caroline and Carol Lockwood intercepted me: "Samantha, you need to go home."

I forgot to breath: "What, why?"

"Because the more people involved the more people who could mess up the story. Go home!" She hissed back and I blinked profusely.

"I— okay."

I curled my fingers around the hem of my dress and slowly descended the stone front steps. The evening air was chilly and ruffled my curly hair. The dried tear-streaks on my cheeks felt oddly heavy and I inhaled deeply. None of this was supposed to happen and I dug my nails into my arms.

Sarah's slack face still stared at me when I closed my eyes and Matt's unconscious from brought out a tremor running up my spine. Who could have compelled both them? Who would benefit from them attacking Tyler?

Twisting a lock of hair around my fingers, I pulled my car keys free from my bra. The red mini-cooper was parked at the other end of the Lockwoods' driveway, and I rolled my shoulders awkwardly to relieve them of the tension. In the distance, a familiar figure walked and I craned my neck.

"Elena!" I hollered, my eyes narrowing when I noticed the dark stains in her otherwise pink sweatshirt. Was that blood? "ELENA!"

She turned around, I could almost imagine her curious expression but someone was walking up to her. I wasn't immediately distressed but when the figure stepped in my sister's path and yanked her to a car, a thrill of horror and worry surged through me.

"ELENA!"

"SAM!" She yelled back and I quickened my place, stumbling on my high heels before kicking them off. I winched when my bare feet hit the gravel hard but I couldn't stop running. My breathing was already coming hard and my side ached, but I quickened my pace even more. The man had thrown my older sister in the back of a car and I guessed from the way she limply fell forward, she was out cold. I was almost there, the spell that threw people around like they weighed nothing was already at the forefront of my mind, but I was still too far away. The car was already moving and when I finally got there he sped away, leaving me struggling for breath and bloody feet.

_To be continued..._

* * *

**A/N: this will probably be one of the _only_ chapters I needed to watch the episode for. As much as I don't like rewriting an episode exactly as it aired, one new person won't probably destroy or change the entire line of conversations. On a different note, I certainly am planning on one new person to destroy or change the vast majority of the plotline. **

**Like always, let me know what you think.**


	9. Chapter 9, Katherine

**Enjoy chapter nine. Like always, VD does not belong to me and leave a review. I would love to hear your thoughts.**

* * *

Chapter Nine, **Katherine**

**M**y heart was beating wildly against my ribcage as if it was trying its hardest to pry itself out from between my ribs as I parked the red Mini Cooper in front of the Salvatore boarding house. The house was dark, no lights on but still I couldn't be too sure there was truly no one there. Flipping my almost empty weekend bag over my shoulder, I used the knocker first, waiting for several minutes before deciding that indeed, no one was home.

Crouching down in front of the door, I used my father's letter-opener to pick the brass locket, grinning when it clicked. Somewhere it should probably worry me that with the whole good girl act I had going, it was that easy to fall back on my old routine. Carefully, I pushed the door open and peered inside the darkened hall.

"Stefan?" I tried, although by now I was sure no one was there. I waited a minute before moving over the threshold. I remembered vaguely that when I'd been a child I'd been dared more than once to enter the spooky boarding house but now when I was not nine-years-old and having something to prove, I could actually appreciate the interior.

The corridors were almost all made out of wood and I'd describe it as dark. If I were honest to myself then I would admit that I had no idea what I was looking for. Something to bribe Katherine with would be a lot easier when I knew more about her or vampires in general.

I knew where Katherine was, of course. The locator spell had been easy, using the Vampire girl's hair that had been wrenched out of her head when I got my bracelet stuck in it and my own blood to channel my magic. For once I hadn't ended up blowing something up (I did set the curtain on fire) and I considered it progress.

Katherine was where old Fell's church was, which meant she was in the tomb. Or at least, I expected she was. And Elena, although being kidnapped, was physically all right. After Elena had been taken the evening before, I had to resort to asking Stefan and Damon for help. Damon had taken to _compelling_ me again, which of course, hadn't worked, and forget what happened. The down sight of pretending to not know about the vampire infestation meant I'd have to listen. Or at least, had to listen partly.

I rounded a corner and almost dropped my bag. The back wall was adorned by the largest stone fireplace I'd ever seen and from the side daylight filtered in from the cathedral windows. I guessed it must be the living room, decorated lavishly with detailed carpets and plush red furniture and I took a moment to gawk at it. I suppose when you lived as long as Stefan and Damon did and had the ability to compel yourself a nice life, you could afford things like this. Considering that gawking at the furniture as if they would better be suited in a museum (which they would) wouldn't help anyone, I started my way upstairs.

The house seemed upstairs almost larger than it had downstairs and ever so often I stopped in front of a painting or trailed my index finger over a piece of furniture that must be older even than the two brothers who inhabited the place. Moving in another room I almost winched at the heavy male cologne that laced the curtains, the sheets and even the plush of the chair near the window. I concluded it must have been Damon's room and fingered a black button-up before crossing the room once more. It held nothing of particular interest to me but I was still awed by the large bathroom with the huge bathtub.

Even without the handsome face Damon definitely held, I could almost understand why so many girls would fall for this. Almost and with that, I forced my feet to lead me out into the hallway again. I encountered a number of guest rooms and what looked like a storeroom before I found Stefan's room.

I held little interest for my sister's boyfriend's room either, but once I took a look at his closet I felt my lips quirk. There was a large section filled with my sister's clothes and I hoped she would not miss them as soon as she would, were I to raid her closet at home.

I yanked at a pair of denim pants, almost toppling all of the shirts over the floor and started to push several panties, bras and comfortable t-shirts with matching guardians into my weekend bag. I often wondered how she could miss anything as her clothes all were so similar to each other. Not that I didn't approve. I was functional and understood why you'd rather want two nice fine shirts instead of one pretty dress, but I tried to buy things that although might have been the same still possessed a different colour.

Although, when it came to it, my older sister had a much better taste in dresses and satisfied, I shouldered the bag again.

I wasn't sure what else Katherine would want. I'd gone through all of my drawers, making an even larger mess of my room than usual until I found my old mobile phone. Our dad's phone number was still in use, mostly because Uncle John hadn't been able to part with one of the last remnants of dad's memory and when I'd put his sim card in my old phone I'd felt a flutter of guilt run through me. However, I couldn't think of another way. If I wanted to be able to reach her without driving over every single time, this might be easier. The phone was fully charged and we could just swab phones when Katherine's battery was low.

The steps creaked beneath my feet as I descended into the cellar. It was sandy and while upstairs everything was displayed in grandeur, none of it was reflected here. It took a few minutes for my eyes to adjust to the dark halls spreading rather far from under the house and at some point, I stumbled into a bare room.

It was small and made up of large, rough, grey stones. In the door, there was a minuscule hole complete with bars and all and I back-pedalled quickly. The winding corridors below the house reminded me more of a dungeon. A dungeon with a fridge. Personally, I thought I might have gotten the jackpot on that one.

It hadn't even hit me until I curiously looked inside, half expecting a dead body for me to find, that what a vampire might have needed, above all, was blood. And there was a lot of it. The Salvatore Brothers had collected many blood bags, obviously stolen from one hospital or the other and I ran my fingers over the last reddish traces still visible on the base of my neck from Damon's bite a few weeks ago.

I still resented him for that and slowly I started to stack them into my bag. I wasn't really sure how many I would need, so I settled for what I thought might have quantified for four litres, swiftly clambered up the stairs again.

I didn't waste a moment. Once I sat in my car again, I started the engine and raced to the closest forest edge, in the roadside. I felt rather ridiculous, stomping down the dry mud-path with my weekend bag. It was heavy too and I held onto the straps tightly. I wasn't exactly sure where the old church had been, with the original town of Mystic Falls built in what was now part of the forests that surrounded the heart of the new village.

The breeze was strong enough to keep the trees and bushes in a constant stir, mostly masking the sound of my footsteps. It took me a little bit over an hour before I finally found the remnants of what must have been the church, scorch-marks still visible on the stones that still stood in a circle. I surveyed around the old broken-down building until I found a small gap leading below the church.

I knew exactly when I'd reached the entrance even though the large boulder with the pentagram and the pentacle should mean little to me and dropped the bag at my feet. My eyelids fluttered in concentration and I grunted slightly as the large boulder in front of the tomb's entrance trembled and moved aside.

The cave, because whatever my sister might like to call it, it was a cave foremost, was situated right under the old church' ruins and I was quite sure that I'd never been there before. Which, was surprising as I'd used to play around the old ruins in the woods a lot when I'd been younger. I'd just never noticed the stairs leading down here. Perhaps they hadn't been here when I was a child. Perhaps I hadn't cared for something that might have looked scary to me.

I breathed out softly.

The walls were damp and mossy and the only real light came from a distant pinprick of sunlight filtering in from a gap off above. It was still early in the day and I nervously plucked at a loose threat of my guardian. The tomb smelled slightly of mildew and dirt and I crossed my arms over my chest. In the distance, even to my human ears, I heard something or someone move closer. The closer it came the more I tried to yank a lock of hair around my fingers. It fell in frizzy wayward curls around my face and no matter how much I'd liked to deny it, my heart was beating fast.

"Cестра—" A voice much like Elena's asked softly and I felt my eyes widen slightly. The woman's resemblance to Elena was truly unbelievable. Katherine Pierce had the same beautiful features, the same pinkish lips and the same olive-skin (although the latter looked rather pallid now). She even stood in the same way, as if she, just like Elena often did, expected everyone else in a room to turn towards her. However, the look she gave me reminded me of Caroline, eyes flashing in irritation. In Caroline's case that was because I'd pushed her buttons. In this girl's case— I had no idea.

"Hello," I greeted dryly, unsure what _sectpa_ meant and Katherine looked at me with such wounded fury that I might as well believe I was the one who'd locked her up in here.

"Come for a visit?" She whispered, and I wasn't sure what I should say to ease the tension that was thick and palpable and I pressed my hands harshly together.

"Katherine right?"

"Elena's sister." She whispered, her voice rough with disuse and I smiled politely.

"Indeed." I agreed and held up my canvas bag before pulling a blood bag out. Katherine's eyes grew wide with hunger, pupils large and breathing suddenly audible. "Right, yes, I brought this for you," I agreed and held it out to her, realising a second too late that she could grab my wrist as well. However, thirsty as she was, she didn't seem to realise that and yanked the blood bag out of my hand and drank greedily.

She sank to the floor, clutching the now empty blood bag to her chest: "My God."

"Better?"

"Much," she agreed her dark brown eyes flitting over me again. "I feel like you are more aware of what goes on in Mystic Falls than everyone realises."

"Hm, I do." I agreed softly, "But I don't know enough."

"Ah,"

"Katherine, I want to know what it is that gets Elena in danger," I explained softly and I tugged another blood bag out of my bag. "I'm prepared to negotiate, but I'll have some ground rules."

"What possibly could you offer that would interest me?" She asked haughtily and I pressed my lips tightly together, inhaling deeply to keep my temper in check.

"Except for keeping you fed regularly?" I asked sarcastically and she flinched slightly. "I have my ways of getting this tomb open."

She snorted: "And why would I believe you?"

"You don't," I admitted, "but of all the faults I might possess, I do always keep my word. I'll just need time. I'll have to go behind the other's backs and I need certain— things."

"You have a witch friend?" Katherine asked suspiciously and I sat down, cross-legged, in front of her.

"Yes," I agreed. "I feel like I have more supernatural friends than normal humans."

She narrowed her eyes at me before they lit up in understanding: "You're the witch."

"Yes," I agreed, seeing no reason to lie to her. I had after all managed to move a boulder as large as a small truck. Human strength alone would have never been capable to manage that and I tugged the spare clothes I'd borrowed from Elena free. I'd found a large stash of them in what I assumed was Stefan's room and held it out to her. She took it slowly, obviously still suspicious and I fished out a pair of converse sneakers. I sighed out when even the comfortable pair of shoes did nothing to ease her suspicion. "I'm not very good though."

"You're a beginner?" She asked me disdainfully, her eyebrows rising high.

"Take it or leave it Katherine," I grumbled and said beginners magic fluttering the fine baby hairs around my ears.

She pursed her lips: "Well, beginner's witch is still better than no witch."

"I'd say," I drawled, still irritated. Across from me, the sun glinted off of something glassy and I drew a leg up, resting my chin atop of my knee. "Do we have a deal?"

Katherine didn't immediately answer; yanking a small, well-packed toiletry bag out of one of the converse shoes. I'd added a small bottle of alcohol and cleaning wipes and a toothbrush with toothpaste. She held the other shoe upside down as well, before pushing her feet into them and sighed again: "Fine, yes. But be aware, little Witch, that if you betray me—"

"You'll rot into the tomb. Again, as I said, I'll keep my word."

She grimaced: "Fine," her face became curious again. "You remind me of someone."

"Oh, do I?"

"Hn," she agreed eyes flitting over my form again. "A lot really, I can see the Petrova blood in you too."

"Sure," I remarked, "tell me. What is it with this town that attracts all the supernatural voodoo?"

"Supernatural voodoo?" She echoed and I pulled the second-last blood bag from my bag and the veins around Katherine's eyes bubbled to the surface again. She snatched the bag from my fingers and sighed as the blood hit her tongue. I watched her fingers tighten around the bag and as soon it was empty, Katherine slumped against the dusty wall, looking sated. "It's a long story."

"I have time," I whispered and pushed the complete weekend bag towards her. Katherine cocked her head to the side and I shrugged. "I brought you a cellphone too. My number is in it. You can call me when you need something or if I can't answer leave a message. If the battery is low, we can switch." I explained and held up my phone. When she didn't say anything to that I pushed it away in my jacket and leant forward. "The clothes have to do for now. I found a few bits of underwear but I wasn't sure about the bra size."

"It's fine," she stated, "you're thorough."

I shrugged: "I was a bit of a dramatic fourteen-year-old."

Pursing her lips, Katherine took a moment to stare at one of the hoodies I'd brought her before shrugging it on and propped her elbow upon her knee: "A dramatic twist is what makes most stories worthwhile. The story you seek started in 1490. I had turned five and ten and I'd just been banished from Bulgaria."

"Why?"

"I had a baby out of wedlock, my father wasn't best pleased." She stated gruffly and I nodded in understanding. A child out of wedlock in times like that meant shame following the family everywhere. I shuddered lightly. How hard that must have been for a girl barely old enough to birth a child. "Don't pity me."

"Don't you think I should?" I asked, entangling my fingers together. Katherine looked to be around Elena's age now, which meant she'd been my age or even younger when she'd slept with someone behind her father's back (the latter I assumed). And giving birth so young— A dangerous feat in the fifteenth century, as more than one in three women died during childbirth. I'd even thought women wrote their wills before giving birth in case they did not make it through the delivery and I shivered. "You were just a child."

"Well, even so, I moved overseas to England and quickly assimilated into the English culture, becoming a noblewoman," Katherine explained and twirled a straight lock of hair around her fingers. "It was there that I met two noblemen, Elijah and his brother Klaus."

Her eyelids fluttered as if she was remembering a time I'd only ever learned about from textbooks and series and I watched her. Watched as her eyes turned glassy and I nervously pressed my steepled fingers against my lips. Early afternoon light spilt in and turned Katherine's hair a bright caramel and a small fine line had appeared between her eyebrows.

"Katherine?"

"Yes," she whispered before shifting, taking another sip from a blood bag. "Where was I— Ah, yes, at first I was rather taken with them. Both men being incredibly handsome, you see and I was— how did you put it? A child, I suppose you're somewhat right. I had many delusions about love and standing." She smiled coldly and I had the frightening idea something almost more terrible must have happened than her father kicking her out of her home.

"And then?" I asked slowly. "What did— Klaus? What did he and his brother want?"

"He wanted to break a curse by sacrificing the Doppelgänger." She answered slowly and I frowned.

"And that's you?"

"Hm-hm,"

I frowned, considering a curse that needed a Doppelgänger (my mind came up empty at that one) and the moonstone: "Is this for the Sun and Moon curse?"

"Yes." Katherine agreed and rolled my old phone through her fingers, before leaning her elbows on her knees, pressing forward. "Although it doesn't do what you think it does."

"It doesn't… And Klaus and his brother. Where they vampires— werewolves?"

"Vampires, yes." Katherine agreed again. "Although Klaus— Klaus is something more. He is a Werewolf as well."

"That's possible?" I asked, opening and closing my mouth in surprise. "I— I didn't know that was an option. And this curse—"

"It bound Klaus' Werewolf side. And in doing so, they used Petrova blood. A girl with my face got sacrificed and therefore only Petrova blood can undo it. Witches are crafty with their spells."

"How is that the Sun and Moon Curse?"

"As far as I know, the Sun and Moon Curse doesn't exist." She explained and gave me a lopsided smile. "It was all make-believe to find the ingredients Klaus needed for his Curse."

"What did you do?" I asked, but I already knew. I could figure it out because if faced by someone trying to sacrifice me, let me bleed out over an altar, or some ritual ground or— whatever else was needed, I knew I might have done the same.

Katherine seemed to read it from her face and her smile turned even colder: "I ran like hell."

"And you— turned?"

"Indeed," she agreed. "The Doppelgänger is the key to break the curse. The moonstone is what binds the curse. But he needed the blood of a living Doppelgänger. When I died I was of no use to him anymore and because Klaus needed the moonstone, after turning, I ran with it."

"I can understand that reaction," I admitted finally and her head shot up, her eyes wide.

"You do." She settled on after looking at me as if she'd tried to memorise every line my face consisted of. "Of course, you do."

I ignored that comment and leant forward: "But? There is a '_but_' to this story, isn't there?"

"I underestimated his spirit for vengeance."

"He has been hunting you." I summarised and she gave a quick affirmative nod. It also made me realise something else. "And that's why you're here. You hoped to extend my sister as the metaphorical Olive branch."

"You've been paying attention." She agreed not looking an ounce apologetic. "Yes, I'd thought after 500 years he would be willing to strike a deal."

"But my sister—"

"I don't care, Honey, I will always look out for myself."

I blinked several times: "That seems like a lonely way to live."

"As long as it gets me to live… What, are you going to storm away now? We did make a deal…" She grinned evilly and I spluttered.

"I can't let you go off and offer my sister up like a— like a roasted ham. She's my sister."

"Honey, you won't have much of a choice. I haven't even told you the best part of the story." Katherine's whispered and her eyes glazed again. It was an expression that made my stomach roll and I froze. "When I ran, Klaus travelled to Bulgaria and killed them. Wiped out my entire family just to get back at me for running. Whatever you think you can do to escape Klaus he will get his vengeance. On you, your family, or anyone you have ever loved."

I felt my face blanch: "He killed—"

"And if you try to stop him getting what he wants, you will die, just as horribly as they did. If Elena refuses, everyone you and she love will die."

"So, you're saying there is nothing I can do?" I asked huffily, my fingers tightening in my shirt. "I can't just do nothing."

"You might manage when you have this." She held up the moonstone and I pressed my lips tightly together.

"I just knew you and Mason were a thing," I muttered and she gave me the Elena-stink-eye. I shrugged and reached forward but Katherine snorted and dropped the stone back at her feet, just where I couldn't easily reach for it.

"What?"

"You'll get it." She jibbed, "The moment I get out of here."

"I told you, I would get you out." I snapped and she tutted.

"This is my leverage. After all, I need you to deliver."

"You're a pain," I snipped childishly and she grinned as if she'd won a battle. "Fine, I'll contact you."

"Not if I contact you," she said, waving my phone at me and I nodded stiffly.

"Bye, Katherine."

When I ascended the large stone stairs again, squares of pale sunlight were filtering down from between the clouds. The chill in the air had dispersed and the air was now rippling with the warmth of spring. A low flower bush had popped, full pink blossoms had opened to the sun. It seemed odd that nature was blooming while my world was standing on its head and I swallowed back the hysterics that threatened to swallow me. My hands were shaking when I managed to park the car in front of our home twenty minutes later and I settled into the squeaky swing seat on the porch. Closing my eyes, stifling a sob with a hand, I leant back, hiding my eyes with my arms. Even with the Moonstone, what was I supposed to do?

My phone rang loudly and startled, I answered it hesitantly, hoping my voice didn't sound— odd: "Yes?"

"Sam?"

"Jeremy!" I whispered almost awed and my fingers tightened around the phone. "Jer?"

"I— is it true?" He asked softly and I trembled. "Is it true, Sam? Anna said they're after Elena."

"It is," I whispered, trembling in earnest now. "I don't know what to do, Jer. I'm really bad at this. I'm bad at magic, I mean last night I accidentally set the shower curtain aflame— I set it on fire, Jer, and I had to bat it out with my tennis racket. I mean I'm so bad at it. I can do four spells without a problem and everything else I attempt blows up in my face and I'm bad at negotiating too— Katherine told me what will happen— and I know Katherine isn't exactly trustworthy, but I actually believe her. Klaus—"

"Klaus?" Jeremy echoed and as I wanted to answer I realised he wasn't asking me.

"What does Anna say?" I asked, swallowing through another round of tears and Jeremy was silent for several seconds.

"That if Klaus is involved it's bad." He whispered and a tremble ran through me. "Sam, we're coming back."

"Don't, Katherine said Klaus will kill everyone that tries to intervene!" I whispered and Jeremy snorted.

"I'm coming home, Samantha."

_To be continued..._

* * *

**A/N: And there is chapter nine. I'd like to begin with thanking everyone who is now following and who favourited this story. It warms my heart to see people enjoying this story and it often motivates me to write just a little bit faster (the thing that takes longest is rereading the chapters). As for the mistakes I'm sure are still there, I'm dyslectic. Grammar mistakes I learn from (when pointed out to me), but how you sometimes write something (like definitely or defiantly; I recheck these words like 20 times), that's the hard part.**

** If you see something (a word written with at and should be spelt with a d), please let me know. As long as my grammar control doesn't notice it, I do often not either. I have that problem with every bloody language (I always saw my grade drop rock bottom when spelling was a thing****,**** they checked for…). **

**As for the term _sectpa, _that means sister in Bulgarian.**

**As for Samantha not going after Elena herself- What is she supposed to do. She's not very good at witchcraft yet and has no real idea what she's up again. I suppose telling Stefan and Damon was a rather smart move for a sixteen-year-old. **

**Anyway, please leave a review! I would love to hear from you all!**

**Next update upcoming Thursday!**


	10. Chapter 9, House Search

**Thank you all for the comments and follows! Enjoy!**

* * *

**o.O.o**

* * *

Chapter Ten, **House Search**

**F**rom the shadows of the street, a figure emerged and crossed the pavement in front of the Gilbert home. Vague and blurry I noticed him move through sleep-filled eyes, but I was warmly nestled into my bed. It was early.

I didn't bother turning to see how early, but I knew it was before five, or else at least a sliver of daylight would have broken through the inky-black sky. However, someone standing across the street and slowly I sat up, careful to entangle Elena's limps from mine. Last evening she'd come home in tears and she'd clung to me as if I was the only thing keeping her standing.

I hadn't slept in my sister's bed for years, but she'd been unwilling to be alone and I gently pushed a lock of long brown hair behind her ear. She didn't even stir and when I stared out of the window again, the figure was gone. Elena inhaled slowly and I leant back again, circling my thumb gently across her lower-back like I'd seen mom do and her breathing turned even again. I wondered if Damon or Stefan were staking out in front of our home, trying to keep Elena safe. It was a likely scenario but my mind felt troubled. I was too tired to think about it—

When I awoke again hours later, the dust danced like shards in the beam of sunlight slicing between Elena's thick curtains. It took some careful prodding, but I managed to untangle myself from my sister's arms, she had rolled over, tucked her head beneath my chin and had wrapped her arms around my waist (tightly, if I might add). Silently, I prowled towards the window. Yawning, I moved the curtains a few inches away and peered outside. There was no trace of our nightly visitor and I watched groggily as our neighbour walked his dog. Rubbing my eyes, I pulled Elena's comforter up till under her chin and silently picked up my phone, before I stepped out of my sister's neat bedroom.

It was still far too early to get ready for the day but ever since I'd heard about Klaus the grazed vampire-werewolf original, sleeping in was no longer an option. At least things had become easier with Jeremy home. With him being in the loop, I was in the loop. He was informed of all that was going on in Mystic Falls or at least going on with our sister and her two boy toys, while I was considered an unknowing outsider.

As far as I was concerned, being the labelled unknowing outsider right now had its perks. After all, it kept the Salvatores away from me. The two brothers fell in an obsessive kind of love. I didn't know any of them very well, but even I could tell their love wasn't healthy. To me, it seemed that the moment they loved someone nothing and no one else mattered anymore.

Elena didn't seem to be in the same boat. As much as I thought she wanted to live, she did not want anyone to interfere, for fear of Klaus' repercussion. I feared Klaus repercussion too, but I couldn't fear it enough for my older sister to just go and die.

"How is she?" Jeremy whispered appearing suddenly almost as if he'd hidden in one of the darkened nooks. Perhaps he had and I smiled tiredly.

"She's asleep," I answered softly and yanked my younger brother closer so I could hug him tightly. "I think she feels a bit better, but— She's terrified."

"I know," Jeremy admitted. "She tried to give herself up to Klaus two nights ago."

"Excuse me?" I whispered softly and he nodded.

"Yes, I know. Bonnie wants to do a spell— To destroy the Moonstone."

"Ah, I see," I stated before remembering something. "But Katherine has it."

"Bonnie dealt with that," Jeremy admitted, looking a bit pained. "We tried something but it didn't work."

"You did something, didn't you?" I asked slowly and he averted his eyes. He'd never been the best liar (than again, I had always been skilled at detecting the most subtle changes in the demeanour and expressions of others). "Oh God, Jer, what did you do?"

"Bonnie wasn't strong enough. I thought I could help her, but now—"

"Now what, baby-brother?" I hissed softly, slightly aware of the chill of the wooden floorboards seeping into the flesh of my bare feet. "What did you do?"

"I tried to take it. We have it now, but Anna is locked in the tomb as well. Katherine tried to stop me from taking it, took me instead and Anna had to help me." He whispered and I gave him an irritated look.

"She could enter, but not leave, couldn't she?" I asked slowly and exhaled loudly: "Wonderful, now I have two vampires to feed."

"What?"

"I made a deal with her, Jer," I answered. "And I was on it too, but—"

"That's good!" Jeremy grinned and I stared at him as if he'd lost his mind. "The others don't want to risk letting Katherine out, but you— you know Anna. She doesn't deserve to stay there."

I pressed my lips tightly together and exhaled noisily: "I'll go and see them after meeting with Tyler today. Do me a favour, keep Elena out of my hair."

"She'll probably be all over me, worried I'll try visiting Anna again, anyway. Bonnie will be coming too— as if I need two dishonest watchdogs. They think I need to be watched even at school—"

"Can't imagine why," I muttered sarcastically and moved inside my bedroom, slamming the door in my brother's face. And to think I'd been so happy to see him and have him home. Anna being in the tomb complicated matters. I liked Anna, or at least, I liked the idea of her since she made my brother so crazily happy. Moreover, dealing with one starved vampire was already hard enough.

I didn't think having two of them would make my job any easier and I slowly rubbed my fingers along my temples. Just as I accidentally kicked over a heap of clothes, my cellphone chirped noisily and for a moment I thought Katherine might have messaged me (again). She had a habit of messaging me when she was thirsty at the most inopportune moments and I crossed my bedroom to my nightstand. It was from Tyler: _I'm sorry for ignoring you. I can't do this anymore. I know you want to help me, but you can't. Please give me some time._

I swallowed the lump that nowadays accompanied thoughts of Tyler and rubbed my fingers along the bridge of my nose. He'd been ignoring me, ditching and avoiding me ever since he turned and although I understood he needed time and space, I'd thought we could talk about everything. He spoke to Caroline after all, and inhaling deeply, I typed out a reply; _Okay._

Tiredly I moved around the heap of clothes (that only seemed to grow larger) and riffled through the layers of jeans and hoodies on my chair until I found my apple printed summer dress (practically the only good dress I owned) and pressed it against my chest.

If Tyler was going to continue ignoring me, I'd have to accept that and continue with my plans. With Anna being in the tomb, I had to move them up a bit. How long would it take for Jeremy to try and get her out of it with a barely thought-out plan again? I shook my head and moved into my adjoined bathroom, dropping my clothes on the sink. I took a long shower, enjoying the hot water running down my back, before dressing myself. My hair was still wet, when I went downstairs, grabbed my house keys from the fruit bowl and picked my Thermo cup from the highest shelf of the largest kitchen cabinet.

"You're up early." Aunt Jenna remarked, shuffling into the kitchen just as I spooned large quantities of ground coffee beans into the coffee maker's filter.

"Hm," I agreed, scrunching my nose a bit, "yes, I have quite some homework to catch up on. " Jenna nodded tiredly and I settled a mug in front of her. Pouring the coffee into my Thermo cup, I caught her eyes "How's your thesis going?" Jenna snorted and I offered her the sugar bowl. "Perhaps if you put a tiny bit more effort—"

"You better watch it, I have the power to ground you." She snipped and I grinned before leaning down and kissing her cheek. She looked at me through bleary eyes. "Are you wearing your woo-me-dress?"

"Yes," I agreed and took Elena's car keys off the hook. "I'm taking Elena's car."

"She won't like that."

"Jer said she was getting a ride from Bonnie," I answered, dropping my Thermo cup in my bag.

"Right," Jenna muttered and wrapped her fingers so tightly around her coffee cup, her knuckles turned white, "If Elena tries to kill you—"

"I'm sure I'll be fine," I answered dryly_ ('Besides, if she succeeds in getting herself killed it will be mine anyway,'_), while pushing a reddish headband in my hair (fitting with the Woe-me-dress). I left the house in a brisk walk. An early morning breeze blew in from what I thought was the east and carried the strong scent of rain. The summer dress was a bit too cold for rainy weather, but I didn't care.

After, unlocking the door, I clambered behind the wheel. Adjusting my mirrors, I started the engine and tore away. The sun had turned the wooden Wickery Bridge a bright white but beneath the water swirled darkly. I accelerated, tapping my fingers on the wheel nervously and turned the radio up. Which slightly eased my nerves and by the time I turned the car onto the narrow road leading up to Robert E Lee High School, my nerves had eased enough to keep my breathing even. I parked the car at the far edge of the parking lot and noticed the line of cheerleader girls already doing warming-ups on the grass field. Caroline Forbes stood a few metres away from the girls, shouting orders.

I rolled my eyes amusedly while making my way up towards the school. Elena used to be a cheerleader as well. She used to be the one dancing on a table during a party The girl who came home so waisted even my wrongdoings (like stealing a car) couldn't match up and was once caught with Matt in one of the locker rooms doing more than just making out.

That Elena, I'd realised the last few weeks, was definitely gone. In its place, a girl had awoken, who seemed to be scared to live. I felt a tiny bit bad for being angry with her. Being angry with her, with Bonnie, with everyone who'd invited such danger in town— Even with myself. After all, I was the one who tried to make a deal with Katherine. Of course, Katherine could be a good ally. I hoped she would ensnare Damon and Stefan again. Then Elena could return to being herself without the supernatural drama. That was the initial plan.

Well, it was my only plan and I settled into the library, Thermo cup steaming with coffee, in front of me. If Jeremy was right Bonnie and Elena would be busy today keeping an eye on him, not visiting Anna. I hoped that also meant Elena wouldn't get the chance to try anything stupid either and best of all, I would be able to search Bonnie's house for the Grimoire I needed. The Grimoire that would tell me how to take the spell on the tomb down (Katherine seemed sure Emily's spellbook should be at Bonnie's). I just had to make sure Bonnie and Elena would be here (together and less likely to figure out where I would go off to). Taking Elena's car hopefully assured that.

* * *

As it turned out it did. Elena shot me a furious glare during our shared English class. Her face was already flushed when she stalked inside, Bonnie trotting in after her, and she remained in a bad mood all morning. Our morning schedule was rather similar, but right before lunch, I could slip away to science, while Bonne and Elena had calculus. Math had never been Elena's or Bonnie's strong suit. I hoped Mrs Cole would keep them busy while I could slip out of the school.

I left the parking lot quickly and drummed my fingers nervously against the wheel. Although magic was still difficult and new to me, I'd had most of the spells down (even though I was prone to losing control and breaking windows or— well, setting something on fire). Bonnie's grandmother used to live in a small cottage near the old playing ground where Grayson Gilbert used to take us when we were kids.

I parked the car in front of Sheila Bennett's lawn, hopped out of the car and followed the narrow path up to the front door. This had been the real reason why I chose to wear a dress today. Young dress-wearing girls didn't break into people's houses. Or at least, I hoped the neighbours would think that and carefully placed my hand over the brass lock. It was cool to the touch and I closed my eyes tightly, whispering the word — _Aperta_ — I hoped would unlock the door. The click the lock made several seconds later was satisfying and I quickly moved inside.

The house was dim-lit, the red curtains were drawn tight and I softly dropped my bag to the wooden floor. My heart was beating fast, adrenaline surging through my veins like it always did when I was doing something wrong and I tiptoed across the landing. My witchy senses (I think Tyler would have liked that description) were tingling, telling me that I was alone in the house.

I had been at Sheila's house before, but that had been a long time ago. If I had to guess I had been thirteen and Bonnie's father and grandmother had made dinner. Our whole family had been invited for thanksgiving and I let my fingers slide over the large kitchen table. Aunt Jenna had come along too, having just broken up with her boyfriend (hadn't she been dating Logan Fell back then) and we'd all been seated around the table when Bonnie's dad came in with his special made chicken.

That had been a long time ago—

Nervously fiddling with the hem of my dress, I breathed out harshly. Laurell's Grimoire (the one Anna had sent me when she and Jeremy were doing the vampire variant of backpacking through America) said you could call for a Grimoire with the right spell and I lifted my arm, palm facing away from me. The curtains fluttered beside me and several books fell from the old bookcase, my eyelids fluttered in concentration and when I heard something sailing through the air, I opened my eyes just in time for a thick, old, leather-bound Grimoire to smack me in the face. I toppled over and bit my lip hard enough to draw blood. For a moment I lay dazedly on the wooden floor, having knocked over the dark-wooden coffee table as well. The Grimoire lay open on my chest and I was breathing hard.

"Fuck!" I whispered softly, slowly sitting up, my trembling fingers tracing my lower lip, smearing blood along my chin. Why did no spell ever work exactly the way it should? At least I'd found the spell I'd been looking for and slowly got to my feet, peering at the immaculately written sentences and well-crafted illustrations. It would be a hard spell and I worried my lower lip. I'd realised that when I did magic, the harder the spell the more it took from me, but—

"I have to."

If not for Katherine (who I'd made a deal with), then for Jeremy. No matter if I thought it would be better if he found a nice human girl to grow old with, I wanted him to be happy. I wanted him to be happy so bad. Besides, for all my fear and anger at Stefan and Damon for terrorising my hometown, could I really judge? I was part of the supernatural world myself now.

My mobile phone suddenly chafed loudly, bringing me out of my thoughts and rattled on the floorboards where it had fallen out of my bag. I felt slightly sluggish, nerves of all kinds running through my system and I carefully picked it up and answered it mechanically.

"Hello?" I mumbled.

"Good afternoon, Samantha," Elena's voice answered cooly, only it wasn't Elena.

"Hi, Katherine," I mumbled sitting on the edge of one of the steps, "how nice of you to call. Didn't think you would make use of my phone so soon— again."

"Hm," she answered slowly, "are you coming by today? I'm thirsty."

Looking briefly at the time displayed on my phone, I sighed: "I don't know— My break is almost over?"

"I'm bored."

"And what— I'm your entertainment?" I asked, pinching the bridge of my nose.

"You're the one who gave me the phone."

"Yes. For emergencies only, but I'm glad to know where your priorities lay." I dryly commented, yanking a page out of a notebook and used it as a bookmark in the Grimoire. Going back home, and practising the spell or return to School. I only had French and Geography left (both subjects I was being decent enough in). It seemed like an easy choice.

"Sam?"

"I come tomorrow. That way I can get everything I need." I said and closed my eyes for a few seconds before getting to my feet, my phone pressed between my shoulder and my ear.

"Tomorrow?" Katherine answered, her voice taking on a tone of authority and I realised irritably the evil twin had the 'I'm-the-older-sister' voice too. "Fine, but take notes if you have to. I need another pair of pants, you got the size down and I guess student loan only takes you so far, so another pair of dull as dishwater denim pants will have to do. Second, I am thirsty. Take more blood bags, stack some at your home if sneaking into the Salvatore home is a bit too difficult for you and bring them to me. Third, Annabelle is starting to work on my nerves. Get baby Gilbert to come by. Must get her into a better mood—"

"Is that all?" I interrupted sarcastically and I heard a gruff sort of sound as if she was holding back a snicker or an irritated huff (I wasn't sure).

"No," she answered, "just get it done and—"

"Katherine," I interrupted again, "I've got the Grimoire. I've got the spell."

She was silent for a moment: "Why did you not mention that immediately, you stupid girl?"

"Always so pleasant. I'll need the afternoon to study it, get some necessities like candles and what not to draw power from. I'll get you a blood bag each. Please don't kill each other!"

"You better get it done, kid."

"You know, you could be more pleasant to me," I remarked and ended the call swiftly, already regretting what I'd done. Didn't my mother always warn me that if I played with fire I would get burned? I shook my head and left Bonnie's house quickly, silently apologising to whatever ancestor witch was listening. When I was done I would be returning it. That I was sure of.

_To be continued..._

* * *

**A/N: Katherine, you're a bit of a bitch. This chapter and the last were difficult for me. I can't say why I just couldn't get them right. However, things will start going sideways very soon. Next update upcoming weekend. **

**Like always, let me know what you think!**


	11. Chapter 11, An Original

**And here is chapter Eleven. Much sooner than expected. I'm trying to hold onto a quicker updating schedule. As for the magic-wielding part in this chapter, I decided to cut it short, because right now it wasn't the most important part. **

**Anyway, enjoy! I would love to hear what you all think of it. This story was mostly a plot bunny that wouldn't go away and I'm just going with the flow.**

* * *

o.O.o

* * *

Chapter Eleven, **An original**

**I**t had started as a balmy day and the air felt humid, clammy on my skin. The birds twittered loudly and the tomb still smelled of mildew. It was still early, I'd sneaked out of the house before dawn, after spending the entire evening and the first part of the night researching the spell I was using now. I'd had tried it once, mostly to feel the magic pumping and it had sent little tremors running through the glass windows before they shattered.

I was certain I would be able to do it, even though Jeremy had inquired if we shouldn't ask for Bonnie's help. I'd certainly declined. If Bonnie knew then Elena would know and the whole idea had been for Elena to be kept in the dark. Besides, if this wouldn't work, asking Bonnie for help was still an option. The fires around me fluttered and spluttered, and I started to chant louder: "Phasmatos Salves Nas Ex Malon, Terra Mora Vantis Quo Incandis, Et Vasa Quo Ero Signos."

Standing in the middle of the drawn pentagram, surrounded by torches and candles to draw power from, I tried to keep my breathing even. The spell was working, if slowly and sweat was beading on my forehead, sliding down the nape of my neck. The spell was draining and I tried to concentrate on all of the senses around me, tried to concentrate on the words that started to blur on the page before me. Something lukewarm and sticky ran from my nose. The iron tang that followed when it hit my lips made identifying it easy. Blood, rolling down my mouth until it stuck to my bottom lip and dripped down my chin. I felt dizzy, extremely so but I realised too that I was close. It buzzed through my blood, fizzled around my fingertips and I knew instinctively that the magic around the tomb was flickering, failing. I repeated the words of the spell once again, my fingers gripping the grimoire hard.

"Stop it, Samantha!" Jeremy's vampire girlfriend snapped, "You're not strong enough on your own."

"No—" Katherine hissed, "she is!"

And I was. I felt it when the magic around the tomb fell away just as my knees buckled, my body became heavy and I toppled backwards in a dead faint. A pair of slender arms caught me before I'd even hit the ground and I tried to fight against the exhaustion that pulled at me. My head felt foggy but after several moments, I counted ten of my heartbeats, I managed to blink the blurriness only away.

"My, my," Katherine stated, her face only a few inches away from me. "How well you've done."

"Y—you sound surprised." I managed groggily and she grinned, Anna hovering over her shoulder with a furious expression, as if she would like nothing more than to wrench me out of my sister's look-a-like's arms and wring my neck. I chocked back a semi-hysterical laugh and tried to gain back some balance, my feet uselessly scraping against the dusty ground.

"You can't stand," Anna told me and Katherine nodded in agreement.

"Is this the moment you're going to rip my throat out?" I asked dizzily and Katherine smirked. I had expected to run away from her when I was done, talking to her over the phone the next evening to discuss some new terms but— She tapped my cheek in a way that did not convey murderous intentions.

"Don't worry, Little Ally. You just showed me how useful you can be." She whispered, her arms curling around my knees and lower back, before picking me up as if I were a little child. I'd probably have been embarrassed at normal circumstances, but now my body felt too drained of energy to care. As she carried me up the dusty stone stairs, she didn't even jostle me, so in the end, it wasn't even mightily unpleasant.

"Katherine!"

"Oh stop your whining, Annabelle—" Katherine remarked grossly, we'd just ventured out into the woods and I blinked up at the sea of green above me, "—I honestly don't see the problem. We're both out of the tomb— you can visit Lover-boy."

"That is his sister, Jeremy—" she snarled back before she made some sort of choking sound. Suddenly, I found myself on the forest floor, leaves and branches getting stuck in my frizzy wayward curls and I grunted. When I managed to open my eyes and rolled over on my stomach, my eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Katherine was frozen in place, her face paling rapidly and Anna looked rather sick to her stomach, her dark eyes wide and her mouth agape. I barely managed to heave myself on my elbows, my frown deepening. A man was standing at the edge of the forest, only a few metres from my car. He was not overly tall, had short brown hair, an angular face with high cheekbones and a strong jaw. He was dressed in an immaculate suit and I could think of no reason why both vampires had frozen.

"Elijah," Katherine gasped, much like a drowning fish. Elijah the original? The original vampire that had had a hand in the preparations of Katherine's sacrifice? He certainly didn't look like the psychopath I'd expected, but instead was rather handsome. With an amused smile, he flashed forward just as Katherine flashed backwards.

"Katerina, thank you, for having the good sense of being frightened." He whispered and he moved forward again. I rolled helplessly to the side and Anna disappeared in a whoosh. Katherine attempted to do the same, but Elijah intercepted her and it looked as if it was easy for him too.

It took several attempts, but finally, I managed to push myself up on my feet with a fit of pure will. I wasn't feeling well— not well enough to run, that didn't stop me from trying. My vision shifted dangerously before me and I struggled to keep my balance. When I dared a look behind me, my mouth forming a shocked 'o', I watched Katherine pounce, letting out a yell as she plunged a large branch through Elijah's chest. He sent her sailing in return, even as he staggered back in surprise. My legs tangled, my balance shifted violently forward and I fell firmly on my chin, right next to my car, my breathing fast and coming in shallow breaths.

Katherine had taken down two trees in her descent and I watched in amazement as the man pulled the branch from his abdomen and sent it sailing through the air in a smooth swipe as if it was nothing. His blouse was covered blood but he didn't seem to care and carelessly straightened his jacket. "That was a stupid move, Katerina. I'm an original. You are no match for me."

Nor was I and I jerked my chin at her, hoping to send the message across to run. I didn't doubt she would, but at least this way I could pretend she wouldn't have abandoned me otherwise. I felt so weak, I didn't know where my car keys were and slowly I crawled forward, and under my car. The gravel underneath me felt painful and a lock of hair got caught at whatever it was that made up the belly of a car. I was quite sure Elijah hadn't seen me crawl under it, but I didn't dare to move. This vampire felt a tad bit different than any other I'd been in contact with. His angry gaze locked on Katherine's trembling frame and he was oozing with power. I was terrified.

Katherine turned on her heel and again Elijah intercepted her, but she had anticipated it and another tree was felled. It hit the ground, forcing Elijah to jump back but it bought her enough time to disappear, leaving me laying frozen underneath a car. My luck certainly had taken a turn for the worse. The rough stones beneath my body dug painfully into my flesh and I watched enthralled as the dark-haired man dusted his jacket off, closing the buttons to hide his bloodstained white blouse.

I almost audibly thanked every God I could think of when he whooshed away and slowly, I turned my head and tried to tug my hair free. Just as it gave and my hair curled around my cheek once more a hand wrapped tightly around my ankle and yanked me out from under my car. I shrieked and in a matter of seconds, I found myself pressed beneath one of the world's oldest vampires. My eyes widened and my lower-lip started to tremble. A hand wrapped tightly around my throat and I squeaked, struggling futilely and limply against his grip. My body refused to cooperate orderly and after a few seconds, I ceased my struggles and lay limply beneath him.

"Who may you be?"

He loosened his grip slightly when I couldn't form any words and Oxygen flooded my system once more. I forced my bruised throat to swallow so my next words would come out clear: "Sam," I mumbled and his mouth fell open in recognition.

"Sam?"

"Samantha Gilbert," I mumbled and blinked against the blurriness. "Are you going to kill me now?"

"Elena's sister."

"Uhu," I agreed, darkness bursting before my eyes and fractured my vision in a blurry mess. I could tell he was nodding, his finger moving across my chin and cheek, probably tracing the crusted remains of my blood. He cocked his head to the side, his eyes flitting to my neck.

"You're on her list," he stated and he yanked me up.

"I don't understand," I said, my head rolling back, "Katherine said you and Klaus killed her family."

"I will not hurt you, you have my word."

I groaned pathetically, winching when he pulled me from the ground. I hardly thought someone's word amounted to anything but I was too tired to argue, too tired to worry. I should have and even though I fought against the darkness curling around me, I couldn't win from it.

* * *

When I awoke again I was curled up in the passenger seat of a car, my cheek pressed against the cold leather. The comforting purr of the engine almost lulled me right back to sleep and I blinked several times. Elijah was in the seat next to me and outside the night darkened landscape flashed by. According to the glowing digital clock displayed on the dashboard, it was nine-thirty and I sluggishly stretched my legs and spied at his face. He didn't look all that horrible. Certainly not the kind of man who slaughtered entire families, but then again, nor did Damon Salvatore look like the type who would tear out Mister Tanner's throat without ground either.

"Good evening, Miss Gilbert."

My face flushed slightly and I averted my eyes: "Where are we?"

"On our way back to Mystic Falls."

"Back? You've been driving me around all day?" I asked surprised and realised he'd draped his suit jacket over me. It was a nice gesture and I stared at his face again. "Why?"

"Miss Gilbert, I may be an original vampire, but if I were to storm into your home with your unconscious body, I'd say I would be blamed for it."

I sniggered at that. Knowing my judgemental sister and my worrywart of an aunt, I had to agree with him. "Elena would certainly be judging you if you did."

He gave me a curious smile, one that was neither kind nor malicious, but quirked his lips up and he gave me an unreadable look: "She doesn't look like the judging type to me."

"You certainly don't know her all that well then," I answered before remembering I shouldn't feel too save in his company. He was still looking at me with a soft sort of composed amusement. "Are you taking me home?"

"Hm," he agreed as he changed gears, "I doubt holding on to a baby-witch would do me any good."

"Baby-witch?" I spluttered and I glared at him.

"Making a deal with Katerina…"

"Are you going to hurt her?" I asked slowly. I might not be her biggest fan, but in the end, I didn't really want her to get hurt either. She'd looked so young when facing off against a vampire that obviously terrified her. And did anyone deserve to lose their family the way she did? I didn't think so.

"It seems compassion is a family thing."

"I'm not sure about that," I answered softly. I cared. There was no need in pretending I didn't. I had been telling myself over and over again that the vampires who ran around Mystic Falls (mainly Damon) were horrible and deserved Uncle John's contempt, but in the end, I really didn't want them to be hurt either. My father had said I was a soft-hearted girl, which certainly had been in conflict with my tomboyish ways, but hadn't been untrue either. I might have had (perhaps still have) a reputation of being one of the boys I still slightly cried when Colin Firth delivered his lines of War in _The King's Speech_ and had my heart beat faster when seeing the chase in _Disturbia_. Of course, this man, who amounted to a God among vampires, didn't need to know that. "Wait, you're fast and really strong right?"

"Yes," he agreed and I puckered my lips in thought.

"Why not drop me off through my window?" I asked. I was quite sure that was how Edward Cullen broke into Bella Swan's bedroom every single time.

The look he gave me was best described as aghast. "You expect me to sneak into a teenage girl's bedroom?"

The mental description of businessman looking Elijah, climbing the fir tree next to my window before wriggling it open with me thrown over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes was amusing and I wore my grin for many more minutes. He had his eyes on the road again and I straightened in my seat. Over the past few months my fear of cars, or being in a car had eased in only a slight remnant of uneasiness and I peered outside, watching the scenery flash by.

"Shouldn't you be afraid?" He asked finally, probably surprised I was compliantly sitting next to him and hadn't tried stabbing him with a pencil or anything else that was sharp.

"I was," I agreed, but fear made me babble stupidly so it was better to push it aside, "but you haven't really done anything to hurt me." He gave me a look as if he thought I was stupid. Perhaps I was. "Why are you helping Klaus, when you don't really seem like doing the killing-spree thing?"

"What makes you think I don't like that?"

"Because you haven't harmed me. Because I can tell when someone is lying to me."

He snorted: "Miss Gilbert, I assure you, after a thousand years, you wouldn't be able to tell if I lie or not."

"Are you that old?" I asked before I could stop myself and his lips quirked.

"No filter," He mused and we passed along the riverbank of the Wickery River and Wickery Bridge was pale white in the waning moonlight. I could never really look at it without remembering the car, ramming the guardrail, the water rushing in and I inhaled sharply, averting my eyes.

"I babble when I'm slightly frightened."

"Then at least you have a slight good sense of being frightened." He dryly remarked and my eyes flitted over his form. There was still blood staining his shirt where the branch had pierced his abdomen but it didn't seem to give him any discomfort.

"Why do you want to break the curse so much?" I asked, crossing my ankles. I knew I held his attention from the way his eyes flitted to me in acknowledgement and I cocked my head to the side. "It seems weird. Why would you want some super-vampire-werewolf creature to roam the earth?"

"I don't."

I stared at him with wide, curious eyes: "What? Then why do you want 'Lena to sacrifice herself if you don't even really want to help Klaus?"

"My brother will be weakened after the sacrifice. It will be easier to kill him then."

"To kill him after the sacrifice?" I echoed. I ignored the comment about his brother, filed it away for later and snorted: "It might be easier than, but my sister will be death."

He looked at me, eyes flitting over my face, lingering on the deviant set of my jaw and cocked his head to the side. "You look like her."

"We're related," I snarked back and he smirked again.

"Babbles when scared, hm?"

"I could try the 'gives-migraines-when-scared' if you prefer?"

"You could try that," he agreed, so obviously amused I felt rather insulted and turned to me, "but then I might lose control over the vehicle. And while I am durable, you're not."

I glared at him. I didn't think I felt well enough to try using an aneurism on him, anyway (if I could even do that without setting the car on fire that was). Crossing my arms over my chest, I slouched back in my seat. When we turned into my street and I pursed my lips. "If Klaus is your brother, again, why do you want his death?"

"Because he took our family."

"Took?" I asked, "As in killed?"

He gave me a sort of half-nod and I pressed my lips tightly together. I could understand for vengeance better now, but, "But— if you want him dead… Then why did you fight with Katherine?"

"I have my reasons to want Katherine to pay," he told me evasively.

I stared hard at his face as if the answers would be written on the tight line of his mouth, the glimmer in his eyes and the tight tendons in his neck. Somehow it did and I gasped in understanding. "You— _liked_ her!"

"Do people often tell you that you talk a bit too much?"

"No," I answered dryly before mulling over my next words. "Say that I get why you want to kill Klaus— whose your brother— why would my sister have to pay for that? Elena, she doesn't really deserve to die—"

"I've got that covered."

"How?"

"It's really a pity a witch can't be compelled," he muttered, although I was under the impression he said it solely for my benefit, and he killed the engine. I made no move to get out of the car and he made a face. It was a face I'd seen my father make when he thought I was particularly difficult and I felt my cheeks flush. "Miss Gilbert, I've made a deal with your sister—" and he held his hand up when I opened my mouth to say something, "—to keep friends and family safe. I'll uphold my end of this bargain and I've got something that will help your sister survive the ritual. Are you satisfied now?"

"What will help her?"

"Out Samantha, or I get you out myself."

"I could still give you a headache when you're acting like that." I muttered under my breath, but did clamber out of the car. He was already at the other side, offering me his arm and my eyebrows rose in surprise. "What?"

"I'm escorting you to your home. Lest chance you run into Katerina and work up another one of your foolish schemes."

I opened and closed my mouth: "They can't know that!"

"Can't they?"

"No," I whispered hurriedly, "Elena doesn't know I'm a witch! Please, they can't know— they—"

"Katerina knows," he remarked and we stopped in front of the door.

"Yes," I agreed, "but my sister has enough on her plate. Me being a witch will not make any of this any better! She'll worry about me and probably beat herself up because instead of protecting me, I now are a part of the supernatural world as well, and I don't need that."

Elijah didn't answer me and suddenly the front door slammed open and Aunt Jenna appeared. Her strawberry blonde hair was pushed up in a messy bun and she looked as if she had been crying. When noticing me, her eyebrows furrowed together in her you're-in-so much-trouble-now look, before her eyes widened: "What happened?"

"She fainted," Elijah answered smoothly and I peered at him with wide eyes, "Whereas the blood on her chin. I'm sorry Miss Sommers, I wish I could have called you, but I had no idea who she was at first."

"You fainted?" Jenna asked and she pressed her hand to my forehead. "You don't feel warm?"

"I'm feeling a lot better," I admitted, not entirely untruthful either and smiled. "Still a bit tired."

"Hm, you do look pale." She agreed and pointed at the stairs. "Upstairs with you. I'll come up to check on you in a minute."

"Okay," I agreed and childishly saluted Elijah before shouldering my way past Jenna and up the stairs. I didn't even bother to change into my pyjamas and just threw myself onto my bed, resembling more of a nest right now, with several colourful quilts piled atop of each other. My bedroom door opened almost immediately after and in came Jeremy, looking frazzled, red-faced and happy and he flopped backwards, dropping his head on my knees. Looking at me like a cat who needs his ears to be scratched. I probably was a bit of a sucker that I fell for it (every single time) and I ran my fingers soothingly through his hair.

"You do that the same way as mom did," he whispered and for a moment my fingers froze. And then I smiled, blinking back tears and we curled up together in a way we'd done when we were little and both scared of storms and lightning.

"How's Anna?"

"She's good," Jeremy admitted. "Thanks, Sis."

My eyelids were finally drooping and I nodded: "You're welcome!"

_To be continued…_

* * *

**A/N: Next chapter some magic practicing hopefully^^**


	12. Chapter 12, Betrayal

**A/N: Enjoy the newest chapter! Shit will hit the fan!**

* * *

**o.O.o**

* * *

Chapter Twelve, **Betrayal**

**T**he windows rattled when the library door slammed closed and Luca Martin, new student and part-time Elena stalker, prowled inside. I had been trailing my fingers along the spines of the books in the History section, searching for a thorough history book about the sixties, when the doors slammed closed.

I craned myself around the wooden shelves crammed with books and watched as he threw himself on a chair and kicked at his rucksack. I felt my eyebrows scrunch up and kept staring at him. He was reasonably cute, with impossible dark-brown eyes and a dimpled smile but— He was also working with Elijah and the son of the warlock who, according to Jeremy, had taken Bonnie's power, so I normally stayed clear of him.

I realised belatedly he was on the phone, his mobile pressed between his right cheek and shoulder and his face seemed spooked. I wondered briefly if he was talking to Elijah. I hadn't seen the Original vampire again but I was quite sure he hadn't told on me either. If he had, I was sure Elena would have confronted me about it by now (she had always been interestingly bad at keeping secrets from me). Slowly, I inched away, but Luca still noticed me. Perhaps it was the sudden movement of my head shooting back, or it was just stupid luck, but he noticed me and in several long steps he turned around my corner and stopped right in front of me. My back hit bookcase harshly and he glared at my face.

"Where is Elijah?"

I wondered for a moment if I should act stupid, but in the end, I decided against it and go with the truth. It seemed to have done me many favours thus far: "Erm, how should I know? I'm not Elijah's keeper."

"I know he spoke to you a few days ago."

"He did," I agreed slowly and Luca's dark eyes flitted over my face, searching for any insincere qualities. I tried to keep my face blank, lest chance he'd find something in the line of my mouth he would interpret as a lie. "He spoke to me because I was the one who set Katherine free."

His eyes widened slightly, but I was quite sure that was just an act for my benefit. I snorted softly; so by searching me for lies, he would lie himself. Interesting, but not all that surprising.

"You should probably ask the A-team." I finally settled on, the shelves digging almost painfully into my lower back. "You know, Elena, Bonnie and Stefan? If something happened to your Original Master, they would probably know."

It was probably not pleasant to sent him after my own sister, but with her obsessive vampire beaus she should be relatively fine. Luca was still suspicious, obviously, and took a step closer towards me. My fingertips clutched the shelf behind me and finally, his eyes flashing.

"You're lying!"

"What?" I gasped, "I'm not!"

His face twisted in rage and he raised his arm, obviously to throw a spell. And that spell hurt. I made some pathetic whining sound as pain pressed against my temples and surged behind my eyes.

My shoulders were wretched back and I could almost imagine joints and muscles tear. Panic steered at the pitch of my stomach and quickly, without thinking about the repercussions, I pitched my hand up. The pain stopped almost immediately and Luca folded in on himself, like a flower waning with the lack of sunlight. The bones of his arms snapped, forcing the limb into unnatural angles and he gave a short garbled scream, his face frozen in pain. He flopped backwards with a gasp, his head banging harshly against the leg of a table and—

He did not move again.

A large part of my body felt bruised and painful, as if someone had battered at it with a baseball bat but that nothing to do with the painful beating of my heart against my breast-bone. Blood was languidly spreading around Luca's head, first tracking down the cracks along the floorboards before sated and moving over the polished parts of wood as well. I took a took a huge, gasping breath, hoping, praying Luca was still breathing. That it was just a shallow head-wound (because everyone knew head wounds bled a lot).

Seconds after dropping to the floor next to him, my knees were stained, denim fabric saturated with blood. My hands were on Luca's shoulders: "Please don't be dead! Please don't be dead!" I chanted, almost like a prayer. The first stirrings of remorse, of losing control (again), almost distracted me fully, but I managed to shook it off and felt my breath escape me in a whoosh, when I felt his breath warm and damp rush past my palm when I held it above his slightly opened lips.

"Luca?" I tried. I was pretty sure I still broke both of his arms (judging from the odd angles they were in) but at least he was, Thank God, breathing. With less fineness than I would have liked I yanked my grey sweater over my head and pressed it tightly against his head. "Help? Someone, help me!"

"What happened?" Miss Fish asked and waved me away. I jerked up to my feet, shifting from foot to foot and watched almost emotionally-detached as she tugged her mobile phone free from her pants pocket. "What happened, Samantha?"

"I—" I started and then shook my head, tears clinging to my lashes and fracturing my vision. I could hardly tell her we had a witch fight and searched for an answer. "He fell— I don't know, he hit his head, I think."

Pressing her phone against her ear, skepticism written on her face, she said: "You Gilberts always stir trouble. Ah yes, I need an ambulance—"

The late afternoon sun streamed in through the high library windows by the time the ambulance members enter. Outside, students have assembled, trying to get a peek of what's going on, inching to see over each others shoulders, peering through the glass doors and I was standing in the tight embrace of the school councillor. I might have gotten myself in trouble on a regular basis; the occasional fight which ended in me whacking some poor idiot with my textbook, several paint-spray-on-the-toilet-wall accidents and even the whipped cream trap I'd built in Courtney's locker, I had never been in for hurting someone this serious. And serious it was, because the fear was real on their faces.

"Miss Gilbert—"

I was not even sure who was talking to me now, only that I felt extremely light-headed and then Alaraic Saltzman appeared to lead me away. The door swung open to the History classroom and he ushered me in one of the many vacated seats. His phone on his desk and rubbed his hand tightly together. I doubted he was well versed into dealing with hysteric teenage girls. As far as I was concerned men were often unsure how to deal with the hysterics of teenage girls, or from girls in general and I felt my lower-lip tremble as tears accumulated in my eyes and started to drip down my cheeks.

The blood leeched from his face and he yanked a handkerchief out of one of the shelves in his desk and offered it to her.

"There, there!" He muttered while we waited. Waited until Miss Fish returned and told Alaric to take me home. Because an adult, a representative, was supposed to be present during further questioning. And that would be Aunt Jenna—

Or Uncle John as it turned out. When Alaric pulled up in front of my house, Liz Forbes' police car was already standing in front of our house and my stomach dropped at the sight. We scrambled up the steps and up onto the porch before following the panicked voices to the kitchen.

John was seated at the kitchen table, looking as if he'd been there already for a good few minutes and Liz Forbes was settled opposite of him. Aunt Jenna was making coffee, spooning coffee beans into the coffee maker and Uncle John nodded his head to the chair beside him. I sat down without a word, conveying with one look only to tell him that what happened was not some silly school fight but actually something supernatural, even though I hadn't meant to hurt Luca Martin.

"Samantha," Liz greeted politely and I managed to level her with a mild glare (instead of the hostile one I thought she deserved).

"Sheriff," I returned stiffly. I might have done something wrong, I still hadn't gotten over the part where she'd locked me up at the Grill.

"The school sent me to follow up on the accident of Luca Martin—"

"That's new," I interrupted surprised. "Usually when I was involved you jumped to the conclusion it must and was my fault."

Liz cocked her head to the side and I inhaled deeply before finding enough sense of mind to school my features and look impassive. It was a look I had perfected over the years and not even my nerves, thundering through my bloodstream, could crack that mask. Liz gave me a smile that didn't match the tension in her stiff shoulders. "I've never been here for something quite like this, now am I?"

"No, I agreed."

"So," Liz started, "What happened?"

"He was looking for Elena." I answered, after all, it was not entirely untrue. "I'm not sure. One moment we were talking, the next he stumbled back and slipped. Hit his head on the table and cracked his head open. I tried to help him, but—"

"Yes," Liz agreed, "and then you called for help?"

"Yeah, I wasn't sure what else to do. I'm not a medical professional."

"She does know some of it," Uncle John explained. "My brother took her to the practice so now and then. Thought it was a good thing. To have some outer world experience."

"John, that's not important right now—"

"Of course, not." He agreed. "How is the boy?"

"He'll be fine." Liz admitted and my breath escaped me in a harsh gasp. Uncle John wrapped his arm around me, something he'd never done before, and pressed me against his chest. My fingers curl into his shirt, because what else was I supposed to do with my hands. "I think she's been through enough, Liz. My niece did not do or see anything odd, else she would have told you."

I hummed in agreement and listened to his heart, beating steadily. It's slightly easing, it reminded me of the time when I would curl up against either one of my parents. Liz was talking again, but not to me anymore and Aunt Jenna was mingling into the conversation. Aunt Jenna was ferocious and managed a side-side to her, but I didn't move away form my uncle.

"Liz,"

"Yes," Liz agreed to the unspoken question and I heard more than saw her get up to her feet. "I'll call you when there are any developments."

"Of course," Uncle John agreed and I turned my head against his shoulder.

"He was a witch." I muttered, loud enough for him make out, but not loud enough for Jenna or Liz to understand and pushed myself back up to my feet. John chucked me under the chin and I cocked my head to the side. He acted so odd around me now. "Erm, I— I'm going to freshen up a bit."

Both Uncle John and Aunt Jenna nodded at that and I quickly skirted out of the kitchen. I might have slammed the bathroom door loudly behind me but at least my hands did not shake when I managed to turn the water sink tap on. Clear, cold water streamed down my hands, making my skin chill and break out in gooseflesh. I scrubbed at my fingers until they were raw and when satisfied not even a speck of blood remained, I cupped my hands beneath the steady stream and scrub my face. Even damp my features had not changed in the reflection of the mirror.

I hadn't suddenly grown fangs, or acquired demon-like features. I was still me and not some monster who'd tried to murder a warlock only a few hours ago. I still had an oval face with a fine bone structure, a wealth of brown curly hair that had seen tamer days, and almond-shaped, chocolate brown eyes. Water clung in thick droplets to my thick dark lashes, making it seem as if I was crying. My breathing was still uneven and for a moment I could only stare before I bent down again and took a long steady drink.

The thought that Luca was not the only magical one in his family struck me like lightning and my fingers curled tightly around the edge of the sink. Hadn't Jeremy said Mr Martin could take someone's magic? I might not be superb at being a witch, but I got used to the raw prickling of power through my limbs. Inhaling deeply, I stumbled out of the bathroom and into my bedroom. My desk, that day covered in drawings and a grimoire, had never looked more inviting and I heaved myself heavily onto the chair, collected my drawings and settled them on the edge.

My fingers didn't tremble when I flipped through my Grimoire and I inhaled sharply when I found the spell I was looking for.

A spell that would protect me because quite frankly I expected him to come and get revenge on me and I had better things to do. With no grace at all, I yanked a candle wick out of my desk drawer and lighted it. With a needle I pricked through the fine skin of my index finger and pressed it in a circle around the candle. The blood shimmered dark in the amber light before starting to bubble. Muttering under my breath the little flame danced in synchrony with my breathing. Candle wax running down, dripping down on the desktop, mingling with the blood, before the flame spluttered. A protective layer of magic rolled through my blood, lingering on my skin.

It wasn't the most complicated spell I could use, but it worked well enough. Thumbing my fingers at the scar on my neck, I brushed my hair out of my face and pursed my lips: "Well, that should do it."

Changing into clothes that didn't look as if I'd played a guest role in the serie Dexter, I left my room. Twilight had fallen and the steps creaked beneath my feet. Picking through the jackets and coats on the coat rack, I found a leather jacket that could be mine as much as it could be Elena and was halfway across the hall, when Uncle John intercepted me.

"And where do you think you're going?"

"Attack is the best defence?" I asked slowly and he frowned. "Don't worry. I cast a spell, I should be fine. I just think going to Mister Martin, before he comes for me, might be the wisest thing to do."

"It's not wise and you're not doing it." He returned and my eyebrows furrowed together in anger.

"What?"

"You're not doing it." He echoed, looking at me like he'd done before, about to lecture me and my eyebrows furrowed even further.

"You can't tell me what to do!" I huffed, crossing my arms over my chest. The leather creaked ominously and my fingers dug into my upper-arms.

He gave me a tired look, looking as if he was mulling over my huffy retort and pursed his lips: "I can. Do you know why? Because Luca Martin woke up just ten minutes ago and pretty much echoed your story of him falling. I'll admit it doesn't explain the two broken arms, but it does keep Liz away from you."

"Keep Liz— Who cares about Liz Forbes? What if Luca's dad comes here?" I snarled, waving my arms in elaborate circles around me.

"Then you're still protected. You cast a spell." He echoed back in a none-nonsense sort of tone before laying a hand on my shoulder and pushing me towards the living room. I inhaled sharply when my magic stirred in irritation. It was odd. Now I was aware of it and grown to use it more often, it was sometimes harder to control.

"Where's Elijah?"

"You met him."

"Yeah," I agreed and finally relaxed my tensed shoulders, reluctantly allowing my uncle to guide me onto the sofa. "I met him. He was different than I'd expected. So where is he? Because the Martins are looking for him."

"He presents no danger to any of us anymore."

I gave him an incredulous look before tucking a lock of damp hair behind my ear: "I'm pretty sure we're less safe with him gone than with him around."

His expression turned from solemn to irritatedly-surprised and he sighed: "What is it with you and your sister trusting all vampires?"

"It's not trusting _all vampires,_ it's trusting the lesser of two evils." I retorted irritably and curled one leg up on the couch before resting my chin on top of my knee. "Elijah didn't even hurt me. He had every chance to do so, but he didn't lay a finger on me. I don't say we should trust him, but with Klaus coming? It seems stupid to push your luck the way you do."

"Don't worry," he smiled, "we find a way to protect you and Elena."

I wanted to ask why only me and Elena, since I was quite sure far more people were involved, but I didn't voice out my question. Uncle John sat in front of me, hands pressed between his knees, looking at me in a way that made my stomach feel heavy. I swallowed again, my throat sandpaper dry, and cocked my head to the side. "Is Luca really okay?"

"Yes, concussed, a broken wrist and a fractured elbow, but otherwise fine. He told the hospital crew he tripped." He answered.

"You said it yourself," I answered softly. "How else does he want to explain two broken arms, a concussion and no other evidence of violence?" I still couldn't shake the feeling that Luca's dad might come by to exact some kind of witchy vengeance, but at least I hadn't become guilty of manslaughter. That should account for something.

We sat in a heavy silence, the wind rustled the trees outside and I sat back in my seat.

I had almost lulled to sleep when suddenly John's phone stated chaff and he jerked up rather brokenly, answering it in the kitchen. I listened to his voice, while it became higher and higher and considered my chances. I could be out of the backdoor before he even knew I was gone and again I listened to John's agitated grumbling. He certainly wasn't happy with his caller and, soundlessly, I got to my feet as well and crossed the living room. My hand was above the backdoor handle when suddenly the front door clicked and unknown footsteps entered the house.

I held my breath, fingers tightly wrapped around the door-handle as the footsteps moved up the stairs. My eyes were narrowed; uncle John was still talking through the phone, unaware of the person sneaking up the stairs and I tiptoed back through the living room, taking care to dodge the creaking floorboard near the door, and peeked around the corner. A man, tall with short-cropped black hair was moving up the stairs and although I meant to hide behind the door again, he must have heard me because he turned so swiftly I wondered almost mechanically how it didn't give him vertigo.

"Ah, Samantha Gilbert." He said, and I recognised him to be Luca's dad. Taller than his son but with the same pair of brown eyes, just colder.

I stared at him for several seconds before, I shook my head. "—Nope," and quickly moved my face away. My feet slammed harshly against the floorboards but before I'd even made it halfway through the living room something yanked me back. I'd lunged towards backdoor, jumping over the coffee table, grappling for the door-handle, when magic tugged at my belly-button. I screeched, trying to belly-crawl away when I slammed down onto my stomach.

"You hurt my son," he told me conversationally and I dug my nails into the hard wood of the floorboards.

"Your son tried to hurt me!" I gasped back. "Besides, I didn't mean to! I just—"

"Lost control? Every form of magic has a price, girl." Mister Martin stated in the boring sort of tone I'd use when addressing the weather and he got me to my feet, right in front of him, with the flick of his wrist. If I hadn't been so frightened, I would probably have thought he was quite a bit proficient in telekinesis. But as it was, I was frightened and my head was starting to hurt, even though the barrier around my blood held. My face blanched, he was trying to knock me out, or at least I thought he was and I winched when the living room door was wrenched open and Uncle John stormed inside.

I hadn't even realised Mr. Martin must have closed the door behind him, but when he tried going after my would-be-murderer, he was thrown through the room. Slamming harshly into the wall, he crumbled to the floor like a puppet whose strings were cut. His broken body looked grotesque on the gleaming floor and I whined.

"Stop!" I hissed, trying to concentrate.

However, Mister Martin was far more proficient in doing magic than I was and I found myself thrown across the room as well, hitting the wall behind the couch. Pain bit into the back of my head, but it was not as bad as it could have been without the protection spell.

However, for a moment I was still stunned, slamming into the wood and I froze. _Both _me and Mister Martin froze. A car had pulled up in front of the Gilbert house and Mr. Martin twirled around, moving towards the stairs again. The front door opened only a moment later and people trudged inside. I heard Stefan's voice filter inside, and when Stefan was there, I was sure Elena was too.

I made a soft, pained sort of sound and within seconds the living room door creaked open (again) and Elena rushed inside. I blinked blearily, not sure how she suddenly was kneeling beside me, eyes flitting over my face and finger tracing my right cheekbone: "—Sam?"

I sat up, breathing in harshly, needing a moment to blink through the blur that was both protecting me as it was distracting me: "You can't be here."

"I can't?" She asked, smirking and I let her pull me upright, her hand hot against my wrist. She reached out to brush an errand strand of hair from my face and suddenly I understood: "Katherine!"

"Hello, Little girl!" She smirked and dragged me over to where Uncle John was regaining consciousness as well.

"Katherine?" Uncle John whispered hoarsely, the pale blue veins stood out against the alabaster skin of his throat.

"Hello John, good bye John," she greeted although her expression turned sore and she moved forward, fast. Her right hand fasting over his shoulder, obviously applying pressure and before I could utter a word, he dropped in a death faint. He was still breathing and I was quite sure she hadn't actually hurt him that bad. Fuck, I was pretty sure my evil, sociopathic, vampire ally had just done a Vulcan move and I was involuntarily impressed.

"I did not know you could do that."

"Is the warlock here?" She whispered and I pointed up to the ceiling.

"Good," she grinned, "Stefan! Something's wrong with my sister and John is out cold."

I could only dumbly follow Katherine, her left hand still wrapped around my wrist and blinked so profusely stupid up at Stefan's face, he sent an irritated glare to Katherine. "What happened, Elena?"

"I don't know." Katherine said, applying just the right amount of worry to her tone. "She must have fainted again. I need a moment, can you look after her? I need to freshen up a bit."

"What—" I whispered stupidly and she gave me a look. I had always been good at reading my sister. Reading Katherine was no different. I could read her like a book. Or at least I hoped I could, and dutifully, I pressed my hand to my head. "My head hurts. I think I need a glass of water."

Stefan nodded, his hand hovering above my shoulder as Katherine started to climb the stairs. I managed not to flinch when I finally allowed him to guide me to the kitchen. Bonnie was there too as was Caroline, both pale-faced, nurturing what looked like hot coffee.

"Samantha," Caroline greeted almost too-cheerful, "how have you been doing?"

It was difficult to play along when faced with Caroline, as she grinned prettily at me. Her worried expression almost completely stolen away, though she hadn't quite perfected her poker face yet. I could still make out the worry lines around her eyes as she squinted at me. It was going to be a long evening.

"I'm great."

A very long evening...

_To be continued…_

* * *

**A/N:**** To Sam, thank you for your words of support.**

**Like always let me know what you'll think. I'd love to hear from you. I really hope to improve on my writing. Besides, advice and comments is a lovely way to get encouraged to write more.**

**See you upcoming Saturday.**


	13. Chapter 13, The accident

**And here is the newest chapter^^ Enjoy!**

* * *

o.O.o

* * *

Chapter Thirteen, **The accident**

**I **was sitting, curled up in the window seat of my bedroom on the first floor, staring out over Maple street. Dressed in an oversized red flannel shirt over a pair of black leggings, I twitched my toes. I'd let Elena paint them last night when she'd strolled into my room, shaking and pale-faced. I knew Katherine had killed Luca's dad and although I'd felt sick about it, even I'd understood there were little other choices.

I didn't know why but Katherine still considered me her ally. Not only had she not outed me, which she so easily could, but she'd also managed to convey what happened with one long stare before leaving that evening. Elena had stalked in minutes after she'd left, wearing a different shirt and without the missed dried-blood on her chin. She'd looked fine. Jeremy had looked fine too when he'd entered, Anna the vampire girlfriend traipsing in behind him, but when I'd settled in the window seat, sketchbook in my lap, Elena had stalked in, declaring that Jenna hated her now.

Which was ridiculous, of course. Jenna hated no one. Especially not her favourite niece. I had no dreams of being the favourite, even though I knew Jenna loved me. I was more the misbehaving friend who she could discuss male problems with while Elena was the doting, responsible girl who she could build on. No, I was quite sure Jenna could never hate Elena. However, it must have been bad if that was how Elena felt. And all of that in the span of an hour? Honestly, what the fuck happened?

I'd only just shaken off Caroline, dodged Bonnie's well-meaning back pats (I couldn't let her touch me—I was quite sure that was how she'd learn I was a witch) and had flirted with the idea drawing some cartoon character when my sister barged in without knocking. She'd done the big-sister-act, pointed at the heap of clothes moved to the other side of the room to stand out less and almost strangled me in her haste to climb on the windowsill with me, hugging me so tight, I got little air.

As I'd let her paint my toenails a dark blue, I'd listen to her. She was close to telling me about vampires. I'd known and part of me felt bad. While Elena had selfless reasons for not telling me about vampires, witches and werewolves mine were not. I'd been angry when I'd decided to not share with my older sister and when she'd left, saying she didn't know why she burdened me with her problems, I'd actually felt horrible.

I'd made a deal with Katherine. Spied on my sister for uncle John (who wanted to kill her vampire boyfriends — I might not want to kill them anymore, I still wasn't trying very hard to change his mind) and had been perfectly happy with helping Elijah as long as he'd promised to keep my siblings, my aunt and my friends save. How was I any better—

Squeezing my eyes closed, I let my head drop back against the wall and thought about what I should do. I still agreed with Uncle John— Still thought Damon, at least, to be a dangerous company and more importantly I considered Damon to be abusive. I opened my eyes again, watching the rain creating small perfect rivulets running down the other side of the glass.

After reading, Elena's diary it had only really been Damon with whom I had a problem. Not man-addict Katherine, or animal-diet Stefan, no my problem was with Damon, who'd mind-controlled Caroline. Who'd used and abused her— because that's what I'd call forcing her in a relationship with him— for his own gain. I'd never been a saint. I'd had my fair share of nasty schemes and I'd tricked and possibly hurt people before, but I'd never bullied and plainly used them.

And even if I didn't like Caroline— I could and would never condone what was done to her. Raking my fingers through my hair, I pulled it up in a messy bun (it was finally long enough for me to put it in messy buns again) and pressed my fingers against my aching temples. I really could do with some Tylenol— or a bottle and finally, pushed my pencil into my hair and dropped my sketchpad on my bed.

The half-finished nightingale, gleaming in its half-coloured glory and I quickly steered out of my room. The light on the landing was still on and I hesitated at Elena and Jeremy's adjoined bathroom. Elena always kept several bottles of painkillers at her bathroom. She was responsible like that, but I'd also learned that was where Luca's dad had died.

Still—

And that was when a floorboard creaked downstairs. I frowned, crossed my arms over my chest and carefully peered over the balustrade. My brother — God, I'm stupid, it was just my brother — stood at the foot of the stairs, tugging a t-shirt down over his head while Anna was doing up the last few buttons of her blouse. The both of them tousled, as if from sleep and I felt a smile creep up on my face.

Jeremy was leading his girlfriend up the stairs and sooner than later, they would see me. Would it be really juvenile to make a lewd comment?

I didn't think it was and grinned.

"I hope you two were safe?" I asked, my headache slightly forgotten and they both jumped. Not even Anna's vampire hearing could protect her and my brother against my big-sister-witchy-senses and I waggled my fingers at them. Perhaps, I owed it to both of my siblings to let them do what they wanted and not get involved with their supernatural invested lives. Jeremy, eyes averting and avoiding contact, and Elena both deserved to be happy. That didn't mean I couldn't lord this over him (he certainly would have done so with me, when roles were reserved). "Or— is that a precaution you don't have to worry about?"

"Right," Jeremy mumbled, "bye Sam!"

They hurried past me towards Jeremy's bedroom and I took great delight at the dark, a red flush creeping up the back of my brother's neck. It meant I still could get to him and I prowled down the stairs.

The living room was a bit of a mess and I concluded hazily that they must have gone and done the dirty on the wooden floor, or even worse, the sofa and I shook my head, more disgusted now than amused. Closing the door with a thud I had to catch myself on the stairs' balustrade and was painfully reminded of the migraine starting behind my eyes. Perhaps it was a backlash from the magic I'd done the day before, perhaps it was due to the stress, whatever it was due to, I needed it to go and reached blindly for the kitchen-door.

I sneaked in — and I had to sneak — because both Aunt Jenna and Uncle John had plunged headlong into alcoholism and where deeply engulfed by their glasses of gin and tonic and I silently opened the cabinet above the sink.

"I hate you, you know," Aunt Jenna slurred, fingering a paper umbrella she found God knew wherein one of their kitchen cabinets and Uncle John plucked ungracefully at a loose thread in his pyjama bottoms. He looked rather ridiculous with one slipper on and the other nowhere in sight, leaving his left foot pale white in the half-dark of the kitchen.

"Yeah, I know Jenna, I'm a dickhead."

"Yes!" Jenna moaned, turning her head to peer at her brother-in-law and I felt like I was intruding on some ill-wrought sort of play. "You're really a dick!"

"I'm sorry Jenna," my uncle greeted and I breathed out gratefully when I finally found the bottle of Tylenol I was stupid enough to look downstairs for.

"No, you're not," Jenna retorted, slurring slightly less over her words when angry and I dared another short look at my strawberry blonde aunt. She really was far too young to shoulder the responsibilities of raising three teenagers and I inched to the door. She should be at the campus, getting high or drunk or both— partying with Mason (who had gone off without another word), not sitting in my parents' kitchen with my uncle— who was leaning into her and—

I managed only just to clasp my hand over my mouth and not to choke on the Tylenol pill when Aunt Jenna met Uncle John in the middle and kissed him rather soundly. Aunt Jenna might have mentioned her relationship with Alaric (mentioned having a healthy relationship in the bedroom) that didn't mean I needed to see her and my Uncle to get at it and cast a longing look in the direction of the stairs before slipping away from the kitchen.

"Don't think that just because I'm less pissed at you than I am at Ric, means this will mean anything!" Aunt Jenna groaned and I wished I could tell her that that made little sense.

"Very eloquent, Aunt Jenna," I mumbled and raced up the stairs, Jeremy was just crossing the landing to get into his shared bathroom and I moaned.

"Whatever you need to do, abort the mission." I hissed, using the kind of red flag words that would instantly convey our parents were up and about to do something none of us wanted to be part of and he paled.

"I can't believe I'm getting drunk in my kitchen. With you!" Aunt Jenna lightly remarked, followed by a crash as a chair tumbled over and we both craned our necks to see the kitchen door opening just a tiny bit more, light spilling into the entrance hall.

"Are they—" Jeremy started carefully and I nodded, the headache now only a distant thud behind my right temple. I was quite sure the migraine was dodged by the mere thought of seeing my Aunt and Uncle— I shuddered.

"Yes!"

"Ew!" He whispered and we both retreated to our bedrooms so fast, it made my vision spin and I collapsed onto my bed and curled up beneath the proverbial mountain of quilts and blankets I always kept around the disaster that was my bedroom. Perhaps tomorrow I would actually make an effort to clean up the mess I made, and I fell asleep soon after.

When I woke up again, it was still dark, a blue-black stillness dunking my room in the twilight, but I was ready awake. I took a quick shower, dressed in the same oversized red flannel shirt but chose a different pair of denim pants to go with them. Allowing my wealth of brown curly hair more free rein, I held it out of my face with a red bandana. I spent a good two hours strolling through my room, picking up clothes and sorting the dirty laundry from the clean ones. It took forty minutes before I got all the clothes off the floor and another before I'd sorted through them, having half of it neatly folded into my cabinets and the rest dropped into my laundry basket.

"Thank God," I muttered when finally morning light filtered in through the windows and my stomach started to grumble. I tied my jacket around my waist and left my bedroom, almost running straight into my sister.

She looked even worse than she had last evening, angry and rather afraid and I stopped mid-track. We were never really close, not like I'd been with Jeremy, but our relationship used to be good. When I was a toddler, I used to follow Elena everywhere and when I was a child, when my mother still managed to put braids in my hair, there was a time we would hang out together. But then the voices started—

I never really wanted to think about that, but I remembered the sunburnt grass beneath my white-leather sandals and the way I jumped in and out of my sister's shadow as she led me and Jeremy around the lake near our parents' lake-house. But then Elena befriended Bonnie and Caroline and decided to play with her younger siblings wasn't done. Especially not when high-school started. You didn't hang with younger people when High school started, but she remained doing that even when she was held back a grade and said younger sibling started attending classes in the same year. I think I was partly to blame for that too. I was kinda lost back then. Puberty, hormones, they'd made me— disagreeable. Angry. And anger made things stir, move, explode— It was difficult…

However, even then, the two of us were on good terms. On fine terms, until mum and dad died. After we both survived while our parents had not and I couldn't cope. Part of me thought she blamed me for running. Another part blamed her for calling our parents when we should have gotten a ride home from Matt. Of course, it wasn't her fault no more than it was mine. Blaming her didn't bring our parents back, nor did it make any of us feel better.

Again I felt bad, my fingers spasming around my upper-arms and I peered up at her red-rimmed eyes. "Are you feeling better?" I asked and squeezed her right shoulder. It was about time I told her that I knew. Told her what I was. She accepted Bonnie. She accepted Stefan and Damon. I thought she would understand. "Did you talk to Aunt Jenna?"

"No," she almost managed to smile watery: "but I'm fine…"

"No, Elena, are you feeling a bit better?"

"Yes," she finally agreed and I nodded, even though I didn't believe her "I feel better. I'm not feeling great but—"

"I get it," I whispered, and I did. More than she knew. I knew, just as she did, that she was the Doppelgänger and it was the blood of the Doppelgänger this Klaus-figure needed to break his curse. I felt my throat close up when the understanding of Katherine's words truly hit me. The oldest vampire in the world was coming after my and try to murder my sister and there was only so much I could do. Katherine had told me what Klaus had done to her family. How he'd slaughtered her father and ripped her mother's throat out, spraying the walls with arterial blood and whatnot. I shivered. I understood who would pay the price; I understood it would be Jeremy and Jenna and even Tyler and other people we knew, but—

"You're going to be fine."

Elena smiled tightly, before moving on. I realised although I might have been in the loop before, I wasn't now and I glared at Jeremy's door. When I returned my gaze to Elena again I faltered slightly. She was fiddling with the hem of her shirt.

"Elena?"

"Fine, yes. Jenna— She's angry at me." She whispered and I frowned.

"Yes, so you said?"

"I screwed up, Sam. Isobel— she came— And now she knows Rick and me—" She whispered before stalking along the landing and slammed her bedroom door behind her. I stared after her for several seconds, stunned and not understanding what she was on about. I could still hear her busy herself in her bedroom before I breathed out loudly and while descending the stairs I messaged my brother. _What's going on? Did something happen with Elena and Isobel again? You are supposed to keep me updated, not keeping secrets like the rest of them!_

He didn't answer. Then again, he probably was already at school. I, on the other hand, was able to sleep in, having the first two hours off. However, I would have to be on my way, anyway. Our class was in charge of preparing the 1960s Decade Dance (we could blame that on Caroline) and there was still a lot that had to be done before it could start in a few days. I fetched my rucksack, strolled into the kitchen and packed a large array of granola bars and a bottle of water.

Often, I'd be horribly shocked by the supernatural world I'd been plunged into headfirst.

My sister the Doppelgänger was willing to be sacrificed for the greater good, my best friend was a Werewolf, incapable of picking up the phone and talking to me and my sister's friends were a witch and a vampire respectively. And then there was me, the often blunderer of a witch. And there was Aunt Jenna, who was fiddling with the coffeemaker. Who, apparently was angry with Elena over Isobel. And who was sporting a deep blue-black hickey on her throat, even though she'd tried hiding it with a summer shawl.

I blinked profusely. I'd surely hoped she would not bring Uncle John up with me. "Morning Aunt Jenna," I greeted softly and placed my favourite coffee mug on the counter next to her, subtly trying to stare at her face. The sky outside the windows was stormy and dreary. Rain poured down and thunder boomed in the distance. It was an ominous-looking day.

I accepted a container of coffee from Jenna. She looked sour: "Something wrong, Aunt Jenna?"

"You would know." She grumbled and I rose my eyebrows.

"What?"

"Isobel, why didn't you tell me she was still alive?"

"I'm not following…" I answered and for a moment Jenna didn't say anything. For a moment there was nothing but the sound of the rain lashing against the windows.

"Elena's mom."

"Right, yes," I retorted dumbly, before flushing. I wasn't sure if I was even supposed to know who Elena's mom was. Then again her issue with Isobel seemed more to do with her being alive than with me knowing who Elena's mom was. "That Isobel— I'd thought you'd known Elena was adopted. You know I was too? Because if that was news to you, then uh— how did mom and dad manage to fool a nine-month pregnancy?"

"Don't sass me!" She cried and I reeled back as if slapped. And here I was thinking of getting laid made you easier going. "How could you keep her from me. How could you side with Elena and 'Rick?"

"Aunt Jenna," I tried, hoping to placate her only then noticing there was a weekend bag on the floor in front of the fridge. "I have no idea what you're on about!"

"Isobel is Alaric's late wife," she stressed slowly, hazel eyes practically glued to my face.

"I— what?" I asked dumbly.

"You didn't know—"

I whipped around and pressed both hands against the bookcase, trying to piece together how that worked. I knew Isobel Flemming was Elena's mom. I also knew she was a vampire but other than that, Elena didn't deign much more space for her disappointment of a mother in her diary. "How was I supposed to know?"

"They lied to me!" She whispered brokenly and I turned to her again, pressing my back against the shelves, books digging into my upper back.

"Well, they lied to me too." I echoed dumbly and she nodded. But I'd lied to her too and I closed my eyes. "There is something else though—"

"So you did know!"

"No, no, I didn't— Please Jenna—"

"No, I have enough of these lies. Tell Elena I'm staying on campus." She told me furiously and she threw her bag over her shoulder, stomping out of the kitchen. The front door was wrenched open and I heard her squeak as if she ran straight into someone. My heart started to race immediately and I stormed out of the kitchen, bumped my shoulder into the stairs' bannister and froze. Tyler, face flushed and shoulders hunched stood on our porch. He was not looking happy.

"Well, Sam, your friend is here," Jenna stated seriously and shouldered her way past him. I watched her stomp away into the rain and slowly looked at Tyler's face again. I hadn't seen him in weeks, heard he'd left town, but there he was, on my porch, completely drenched.

"Tyler?"

"How could you?" He snapped and I stared at him with wide eyes. The wind fluttered and tousled my hair.

"What is it this morning with the accusations?" I snapped and hurried outside as well, closing the door swiftly behind me.

The rain was harsh. The streets gleamed while the water ran down the asphalt. Tyler looked like a drowned puppy, his hair wet and plastered to his scalp. He stepped up to me, his hand coming to my shoulder and slammed me back against the door.

"Did you know my Uncle Mason is dead?"

I didn't and my mouth fell open in shock: "What?"

"Yes," he agreed, "Damon and Stefan killed him. How could you keep this from me!?"

"Keep this from you?" I echoed, "How was I supposed to know?"

"Doesn't your witchy—"

"God Tyler!" I snapped. No matter how horrible the passing of his uncle was for him, I was not going to take the blame. "If I knew I would have told you. No matter that you've been ignoring and evading me, I would have let you know. So don't you dare using that voice on me."

"What do you expect—"

"We've been best friends since we were ten! I would never do that to you."

He deflated at that if only just a little and his shoulders drooped. He looked so much like a child then and no matter how much he had hurt me with his evasive behaviour over the past few weeks, I stepped forward and wrapped my arms tightly around his shoulders, hiding my nose in the crook of his neck.

He didn't push me away, the way he would do when he was upset with me or thought I'd done something without consulting him and after several seconds, he returned the hug. His arms tightened around me until I could hardly breathe, and I awkwardly started to trail my fingers over the back of his neck.

"Honestly, I always tell you anything!" I whispered and took one step back. "Where have you been?"

He slumped down on the squeaky porch swing and I flopped down beside him, curling my left leg beneath me. "I've been away. I needed to figure some things out."

"Figured them out?" I asked.

"No," he retorted, "but I'm not sure what I should do!"

"Perhaps, going back to school? Pick up your life?" I asked, cocking my head to the side. "We could find out a way around the Werewolf-thing, you and me, together. Like we always used to."

He snorted: "Sam, there is only one way around the Werewolf-thing. And apparently that's sacrificing your sister—"

"You're a bit behind on the facts, Lockwood." I retorted. "Sacrificing my sister won't break the curse of the moon, it will break the curse placed on some centuries-old vampire who wants to be both. Both vampire and werewolf."

"That's possible?"

"Apparently," I admitted and I shifted in my seat until if I faced him fully, "Come on, Ty! I take you to school. We can be the A-team again. I quite miss you."

He smiled a tight smile and he shook his head: "I need some time."

My face fell and I bit my lip: "Right."

"No, I need some time." He said again. "Not in the way you think. I— I did something bad. I hurt my friends and— quite simply, that's why I need to be away. I just— I just had to know—"

"If I betrayed you?" I asked and he let out a sharp breath.

"I had to know for sure." And with that he jerked to his feet and descended the porch stairs, starting up the sidewalk.

"Wait!" Cold rain dripped through my hair and saturated my jacket even before I'd reached my friend and I grabbed his shoulder tightly. "Wait, for God sake!"

"What, Sam?"

"Promise me, you'll be back!"

His dark eyes softened, the rain still pattering onto us and finally, he turned fully towards me, his hands cupping my cheeks. "I promise."

My eyes bore into his, searching for any, even the tiniest, evidence of deceit. When I didn't find it, I nodded: "Good."

And with that I let him go and after some wistful staring, returned to my house, fetched my bag and dropped the backseat of the car. My hand slipped on the door handle when I moved to the front seat and I sighed gratefully when I was inside the mini cooper, the rain pattering loudly on the roof. The SUV usually drove was no longer in the driveway and I realised a bit belatedly that in childish anger, Aunt Jenna must have taken it.

For a moment I stared blankly across the road, shining from the onslaught of the water. I couldn't really believe my collected Aunt would take Elena's car just to spite her and I started the engine. The drive helped me think, moving through the roads of Mystic Falls. I thought about Tyler— who I'd kinda made up with, and of Elena who was so scared and—

It was sudden.

The old chevy truck before me suddenly swerved to the right and the next moment I yelled because a blond woman had stepped in the middle of the road. My mind supplied for a second that I should remember her, but the car was slipping.

My headlights were coldly reflected at me from the wet asphalt and something beneath my car jerked and suddenly I went flailing. Memories flashed across my eyes like images in a movie; me and Elena learning cycling from dad when we were six-years-old, me and Jeremy jumping from the scaffold near the boathouse. Tyler smiling at me before setting his sleeve on fire during Chemistry in eight grade. Matt Donovan, turning on his heel and running away from me when he accidentally threw a bucket of water over me instead of Elena—

The car sailed through the air, toppled over and slammed harshly on its roof and pain exploded at my right temple. The seatbelt burned across my ribs, lancing my chest from the shock concussion. My breath was stolen away and the car slid down the road, scraping across loose gravel loudly. I moaned and then something slammed at me from the side, sending the car into the concrete wall of a grocery store. My head snapped to the side and I felt blood pooling in my mouth. There was an aching in my ribs and even more, blood was darkening my hair.

I sucked in the air desperately, my lungs feeling cramped and tried to free myself from my seat belt. The windshield was broken and a piece of glass had lodged itself in my left leg. My hands slipped once more on my seatbelt and slowly I felt my consciousness wane and the darkness closed in on me until it was all I saw.

_To be continued..._

* * *

**A/N****: to me Jenna seemed like the kind of girl who would make the same mistake again. Would, in a drunken moment, get together with a hated ex again. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Let me know what you all think. I'm quite curious about your ideas and theories regarding this story. Every so often, I hear one I really like and I change the direction of a story to fit it.**

**As for the accident; you know you're in the deep end when you're dealing with supernatural shenanigans. As for Tyler and Sam, don't forget that Tyler is in a bad situation right now. Of course, he would think the worse. Everyone around them, everyone he thought he could trust so far, has turned out to be a lying _beep. _**

**Next chapter upcoming week!**

**Let me know what you think? Comments and constructive feedback is much appreciated.**


	14. Chapter 14, The Hospital

**A/N: Hello everybody,**

**And welcome (back) to this story. **

* * *

o.O.o

* * *

**Chapter Fourteen, Hospital**

**T**here was a steady rhythm beeping when I came to, my thoughts sluggish and aimless and my eyelids heavy. I blinked blearily and at first, I couldn't make sense of where I was. The room was a pale green, the only light coming from the artificial lightbulbs at the door, while the only window around was hidden behind heavy blinds. My eyes were already fluttering closed by the time the door opened to reveal what I assumed was a doctor. I drifted in and out of alertness after that. I heard Uncle John whisper with the doctors and occasionally I thought I heard Aunt Jenna, Jeremy and Elena ask about my health too, but I wasn't sure.

Most of the time, I slept. And I dreamed, remembered. I didn't dream about what had put me in here but dreaming I did. I dreamt about the accident. Vividly remembered Elena climbing into our parents' car before I'd followed behind her. Remembered my parents funeral. I dreamt about the scratchy black dress I had worn and the tight braid Aunt Jenna had made in my long thick hair. I dreamt about the ceremony and the way I sat in-between Uncle John and Aunt Jenna making a serious attempt to break my uncle's hand. I could still remember all the details of that night when my dad's car had hydroplaned into the water and seeing their coffins being lowered into their early graves, made my grip only stronger.

I'd felt bad when I noticed the bruise that had formed later that night even if Uncle John had never been my most favourite person around. After the funeral, he'd stayed for several weeks, helped (or more accurately annoyed) Aunt Jenna settling in before returning to his apartment in Ohio. Yet, even from Ohio, he called and mailed us, especially me when I was in England for the exchange project it seemed and I'd never really understood his investment in my life. He'd told me countless times that I was too bright to throw it all away. That I was wasting my potential, but when I'd agreed to the exchange project, I'd apparently stopped waisting said potential.

My eyelids fluttered, lashes dusting over my cheeks and I could hear the steady rhythm again. I was also more aware now that I was lying on a stiff bed with scratchy sheets and the steady rhythm of the machine was quickening. When I awoke completely again, I'd gauged it must be several days after the accident. An accident that was rather hazy in my memory and I'd learned I had gotten eight stitches to close the cut on my forehead, had a light concussion and two broken ribs. My body was littered in various stages of blue-yellowing bruises and my right leg felt odd and heavy. I guessed when whoever had pulled me from my car, my ankle had gotten stuck and my saviour sprained it.

The number of pillows I had behind my head at least was comfortable. However, it took another few days before I felt fit enough to be awake all day and not only little parts. The sleepiness could also be blamed on the number of local painkillers they'd administered (and I guessed I would feel worse), but even I could tell there was something wrong with my leg. I guessed it was the reason — and because of the amount of blood, I'd lost — why the doctors were still keeping me there. I couldn't move it. Moving was difficult anyhow, with the ribs broken and all, but I couldn't even wriggle the toes.

I really wanted to ask what the fuck was wrong with it, but whenever I tried, the nurse visiting would change the conversation.

Which was how John found me that afternoon. Propped up against several pillows, bandage itching against my forehead, I was staring some television. The small device hanging from the ceiling was settled on a show I hadn't really bothered to watch, but the soft chittering eased my nerves. There was still a bit of dried blood streaking across my cheek and my neck and another bit matted my hair on the right side slightly against my skull. That itched too, but I guessed I certainly wasn't supposed to scratch.

Blowing a lock of hair out of my face, cradled my hands in my lap and blinked tiredly up at Sheldon, trying and failing to explain science to Penny. It was amusing enough but I was glad when the door to my room opened and Uncle John had stepped into her hospital room, a glass of orange juice in one hand, a colourful straw sticking out of it, and a girly looking magazine in the other.

It was odd how we'd grown close over a common goal and I smiled: "Hi, Uncle John."

"Hello kiddo," he greeted and sat down on the edge of my bed, the mattress dipping under his weight. He looked quite serious and I winched slightly as I tried to sit up. "No, no, stay put." And he held the glass out to me.

I took it without complaint, although I narrowed my eyes at him and he fiddled nervously with the hem of his jacket, dropping the magazine on my lap. I swallowed several gulps of orange juice, before giving in to the pregnant silence: "What's going on, Uncle John?"

"You've been working with Katherine."

"I— oh," I mumbled a bit surprised, "Well, yes. I'd thought staying in her good books would be a better way than arguing and trying to stake her. Besides, as long as she thinks she has leverage I have one on her."

"Katherine is not someone to toy around with." He told her seriously and I nodded tiredly.

"I know," I admitted. "But I did find out quite a bit. I know why so many vampires are after Elena. I know who the main enemy is and I figured out there is a whole family of originals."

"I didn't want you involved."

I drew my thumb across my chin and wiped a bit of orange juice away: "You wanted me to keep an eye on things."

"Yes, keep an eye on things. Not getting involved like this." Uncle John gave me a look that made me feel a bit like a bad child.

"Besides, that ship has sailed." I shrugged awkwardly and winched. Hissing, rolling my hand over the stiff tendon, I pushed myself up against the pillows. "I can't really stay out of all of this when some ancient baddy is going after my sister."

I winched again when the door opened and I turned over to see who it was. It wasn't a family member, I'd low-key had been expecting, and a woman with long dark hair and greenish eyes stepped inside. She was dressed in an expensive leather jacket that creaked as she moved her eyes and she smiled.

"A bit of vampire blood would loosen those muscles in an iffy, you know?" She stated, grinning serenely and I let my eyes flit over my suddenly tense uncle and back to the woman.

"I must admit," I whispered groggily, slightly amused but not really meaning her next words: "I'm not entirely against that idea."

Her lips spread wide, eyes glimmering a bit and Uncle John breathed out heavily: "Sam, this is Isobel Flemming."

I frowned, the name sounding vague familiar yet I couldn't put my finger behind it: "Pleasure, I'm sure."

"Isobel came to see how you were doing."

"Oh," I answered slowly and finished the last of my orange juice, "that's nice I guess. Why does your name sound so familiar to me?"

Isobel smiled: "Because I'm your mother, Samantha."

My body tensed impossibly so and I felt my face blanch. I remembered now, where I'd read that name before. In Elena's diary not so long ago, and now I also understood why Jenna had accused me of knowing about '_her being alive_'. I remembered now that Elena had written about the missing pieces of a device that tracked vampires. Remembered reading what a colossal disappointment Isobel had been for a birth mother and I— I didn't know what to say: "What?"

John wetted his lips and held up his hands. "I— I really don't want to get into this now, Sam. Listen and listen carefully, the accident did damage to your spine. The doctors are unsure if the damage is permanent, but—"

"What?" I interrupted and tried to sit up straighter. My sprained leg. The heavy feeling that wouldn't go away— It didn't feel like it was mine. I breathed out harshly trying to keep my heartbeat even. "I'm— I'm paralysed?"

"That is a possibility." Uncle John admitted, and I could see how it pained him. He turned to Isobel, his face so pale and I realised he'd actually meant it. Actually meant for Isobel to heal me. My vision blurred from the tears and I blinked repeatedly, fisting the duvet between my fingers.

Turning to the woman who claimed to be my birth mother. "And you are truly willing to heal me?"

She cocked her head to the side: "Yes."

I nodded, my short hair flailing around my face and Uncle John averted his eyes. I could still feel the magic course through my blood, but I had no idea how to actually do a healing spell. I knew they were tremendously difficult. Isobel sat down next to him, moving close to me. My heart was beating fast and painfully against my ribs and Isobel stared at my face.

"You look a bit like me." She stated simply.

I didn't see it, but decided against telling her that. I could freak out over my vampire mother another time and I shrugged apathetically. "I— I suppose."

She hummed and veins begin to bubble under her eyes, dark and strange and inhuman and then, she bit into the flesh of her wrist. Ruby blood pooled down the pale skin and she offered it to me. My reactions were sluggish, and she grabbed my arm, shifted until our shoulders aligned, my head lolled and she tucked it beneath her chin, before pressing her wrist against my mouth. I swallowed several mouths-full, eyelids fluttering against the odd taste, and let the warm blood trickle down my throat. It felt odd too. A slight tingle of discomfort against my temple, but at the same time a jittery warmth surged through my body, slightly like the feel of magic coursing through my blood and suddenly a sickening pop resounded loudly through the room. The bones in my back mended themselves and an odd shock of furious feeling shot down my leg.

"There, all chipper and healthy," Isobel sang and slowly she dropped her arm, patting me on my head; "that's a good girl."

I attempted to wipe the mouth away from my mouth as subtle as possible, but from the amused look on Isobel's face, I'd say I failed. It was coppery and salty and I swallowed several times to get rid of the taste. Carefully I patted one of my legs relieved with the shockwaves of feelings travelling up and down my calves and sighed, flopping back against my pillow.

"I thought you were Elena's mom," I started, wriggling against my pillows until I lay more comfortable and waited for her to expand, to explain. She was still looking happy and oddly satisfied with herself.

"Hm," she agreed, "I am."

"And you put her up for adoption."

"Again right," she agreed and I watched Uncle John's face pale quite a bit. "You were a parting gift."

"A— Ew— have you and your lover not heard of contraceptives?" I asked horrified and she laughed boisterously at that.

"You could say we had other things on our minds." And from my peripheral vision, I noticed Uncle John's face dust a dark pink even as he dropped his head into his hands. I gaped at him with wide eyes, finally puzzling together what everyone else must have known already. Why Aunt Jenna was so angry with him, with Elena with me at first too, because she had known we did not just have the same mother.

"You're my father," I hissed, not really meaning for it to come out as an accusation and pointed my finger at him. "That's why you're— Oh my bloody God!"

"Sam," he tried awkwardly as Isobel got to her feet and licked at the remnants of blood on her wrist.

"Don't Sam me!" I huffed back, sounding more like the parent than my uncle did and shifted on my knees so that we were on the same level. "How could you keep that from me? Especially while everyone knew!"

"No one knew," he assured me and I felt my face morph in an expression of disbelieve.

"Yeah right," I sarcastically retorted, "That's why Jenna almost bit my head off when I left before—" and I spread my hands elaborately out around me, "—this happened."

"Jenna only knew who your mother was."

"Yes, Auntie Vanilla," Isobel remarked dryly and wiggled her fingers in some sort of wave. "Well, see you. Good luck, John. I will compel a doctor to release her later this afternoon and— ah yes before I forget." She grinned, flipping out a cell phone and took a picture of my stunned face.

"Wha—"

"Don't worry," she grinned again and Uncle John was looking at her with the sort of universal exasperation that made me blink even harder, "I'd like something to remember you by. The girl who actually looks a bit more like me…"

"Isobel—"

"Bye!"

Uncle John stared after her retreating back in a way that made me think he was not happy with the cards dealt with him in life right now and I suddenly was hit with so many questions my throat itched and I crossed my arms over my chest. "Well?"

"I might have been your birthfather but it was Miranda and Grayson who raised you. I didn't want you or Elena to feel obligated—"

"You should have told me." I interrupted stiffly. "When you learned I already knew I was adopted, you could have told me!"

"I did not know how." He muttered back. "I already have one daughter who hates me, I—"

"I don't hate you!" I stiffly returned and wondered if there was truly one person I actually hated. "You might not win any awards for father of the year or even uncle of the year, but I never hated you."

"That makes one of you. Elena despises me." He whispered and averted his eyes. I was pretty sure beside Elena, Aunt Jenna and Jeremy weren't his biggest fans either, but I couldn't find it in me to voice that thought out. Wriggling my toes, I pursed my lips and twisted the duvet on my lap.

"So Isobel, huh?"

"Hm,"

"She's a vampire—"

"Yes."

"The monsters that hide in human form are the most dangerous of all." I drawled sarcastically and he cocked his head in acknowledgement.

"She wants to help save Elena. And you." John answered and I curled my legs under my chin. "She tries, in her own way."

"I'm not judging you, Uncle John."

He gave me a wry smile and I shrugged. I really wasn't and accepted my fresh orange juice to sip from, while constantly wriggling my toes and moving my legs. When the nurses returned with a meal that should have been lasagne but looked like a mashed tomato with slivers of cheese, I really wanted to go home — 'I'm sure it tastes fine,' Uncle John had tried before I'd pushed the plate in his hands — or the Grill (if that was an option too).

The hospital released me late that evening. I'd left behind several nurses and one doctor, who'd seen to me in the emergency room, with more questions than answers, but I couldn't find it in me to care. God, I would kill for a homemade meal. Even Jenna's cooking sounded eligible at that point and didn't give the accident a second thought. Or at least, I didn't until a week later, when I found myself at the Lockwood manor.

Tyler was noticeably absent and I stood, dressed in the world's itchiest black dress Elena owned, at the back of the room. With my arms crossed over my chest, I listened as Mrs Lockwood explained about the charity Historical foundation my mom loved so much. When called by her name, Elena stood up and stepped to the front of the living room, looking pretty and warm in her purple dress. Several portraits of frowning Lockwood ancestors, glaring down at her as she fidgeted lightly on the stage and I stepped further back in shadows. I really didn't need to be asked any questions, as technically I too represented the Gilbert legacy.

"The Historical Society was my mom's baby," Elena started and I nodded along, standing next to an irritable looking Jenna, "She considered all of you family and would be honoured and touched by this gift."

I nodded again because mom would have been honoured by any gift. She was always so wonderful. Caring and good, she believed in the good of people. She believed in second chances I was just trying to picture her smiling face when something made a horrible crunching sound.

I flinched when someone tumbled off the stairs and whirled around, my eyes widening and my face blanching, because there on the floor was Uncle John — my father, it still sounded odd — and my stomach twisted painfully against my ribs. My breath hitched in my throat and I stumbled over my own feet in my haste to get to his side. A small pool of blood had started next to his head and his pale skin just above his once pristine white collar was covered in more of it, the puncture wounds still visible beneath the scarlet liquid.

Stefan Salvatore was crouching down beside me trying to push me back (he'd certainly been in the shocked doctor category when I walked inside my kitchen after being released without even the slightest sign I'd been in a car accident only a week ago) and I viciously batted at his hand. He certainly got the message then and it was only because of Jeremy, grabbing my shoulder and promising me the Gilbert matriarch would be all right, that I let myself be whisked away.

With everything going on, with Uncle John bitten and humbling down the stairs, it didn't hit me immediately. Just that Tyler had been missing, that Liz Forbes thundered inside as I was pushed in the back of Jenna's car (who was acting incredibly odd) and that Elena did not come home that afternoon. A horrible feeling had settled in my tummy as if I was missing something, and it only hit me fully when I stumbled in my bedroom. The door closed harshly, so harshly an old journal tumbled out of my bookcase, making a soft thud when it fell on the rug-covered floor.

It was a journal I used to keep three years ago, covered in bright green leather. An idea of Miranda, possibly wondering if I too could be persuaded to start a writing carrier in the future, and I slowly crouched down beside it. Several pictures of the summer after I'd turned thirteen were littering the floor and I picked them up one by one, freezing when my fingers slid over Tyler's boyishly grinning face. We were propped together in an overstuffed chair at the Lakehouse, the desk in front of us completely covered with drawings and we were both smiling. That, however, was not the thing that stood out the most to me. Near Tyler's hand was a well-drawn picture of a wolf and my eyelids fluttered.

I remembered then. Right after the old red chevy truck before me suddenly swerved to the right. I'd watched the taillights disappear and make a place for the wet figure of a girl with long light brown hair and a feral expression. I hadn't recognised her then—

But I remembered now—

Jules the Werewolf girl, mason's friend, had caused the accident.

She had almost killed me— and my blood boiled—

_To be continued…_

* * *

**A/N: And I'm ending this chapter on a cliffhanger as well. Mostly because the chapter became too long otherwise, but still quite a view things happened. Did you all enjoy it? Got any tips, questions or feedback? I'd love to hear from you. I'd love to get feedback— constructive criticism makes for a better story, after all.**

**And how about the Isobel and John turn. I'm sure people saw it coming right? I'd say it is believable.** **Because wouldn't it just be like teenage John and Isobel to have a lovers rendezvous one more time? That and I have a reason for Samantha being Elena's biological sister. I'm afraid it will take super long before that will be explained. Really, really long!**

**And Isobel acting creepy? That seemed very Canon-like to me.**


	15. Chapter 15, The Big Bad Wolf

Chapter Fifteen, **The Big Bad Wolf**

**W**hen I'd done the locating spell, after having sneaked into Tyler's bedroom and after searching through it (deciding to use a picture and his well-hidden teddybear from a forgotten childhood beneath a loose floorboard under his bed), I'd looked up the way on Google maps. Eventually, I'd decided on taking the train and the bus, travelling after him.

After arriving at the Central station of Charlotteville I'd taken the Metro, and then hired a rental car to get as far up into the mountains as possible. I'd found Tyler and Jules (who'd definitely tried to kill me) easily enough. As well as the Wolfpack she now travelled with. To be honest, it was almost anti-climatic the way I managed to take them down.

I guessed I was that angry and as my magic ran wild, even several trees cracking under its pressure. The only one who hadn't been treated to a massive aneurism was Tyler. Every other had dropped like lead balloons and Tyler had watched me wide-eyed as I'd turned to Jules, fully intending to repay the due. I didn't think she found me as useless as I'd often felt and I was already whispering my next spell. Fires had started around me, around Jules and I was hurting her. I meant to hurt her, chanting; "Phasmatos Morsinus Pyrox Allum," and watched in satisfaction as Jules writhed on the forest floor. I was under the impression I was doing well. Doing very well, until Tyler had started pleading. Had started pleading to not do it.

My best friend—

And that was probably exactly why I let the spell up, leaving Jules twitching on the forest floor, blood already drying around her ears, her nose and her eyes. I'd never been this angry— and equally as hurt.

My teeth ground together in fury and irritation as I emerged from the metro station again, my hair pulled together in a short ponytail, only to be drenched by an onslaught of rain. The sky was a dark, swirling grey and I curled my fingers tightly around the strap of my weekend bag. I would admit it if only to myself. I was furious. I'd known of course that Tyler would never purposefully hurt me, but to see him stand up for the woman who'd almost caused my early demise, that was a slap in the face I hadn't been expecting. How could my best friend choose some random girl's side?

Jules had tried to murder me and Tyler acted like she hadn't meant for anything bad to happen. The accident had still fractured my spine and if was only because of the woman calling herself my birthmother that I held no lasting scars and limps. The heavy rain had already saturated my clothes to my body and I took shelter beneath the doorway of what looked like a museum.

My eyebrows furrowed in thought. How long had it been when I and Tyler or even me and Jeremy used to draw together in the kitchen of my parents home? Or the way we'd browse through art catalogues and I missed the time where everything was easier. Mystic Falls was still a good hour with the bus and I glanced down the entrance hall, down the gleaming marble floor.

Browsing through a museum, a jolt of need curled around my spine...

While I was here, I could pretend to be normal for a moment. Could even pretend I was here with the school acting as if I was displeased about being there but secretly loving it and I bought a ticket at the register. A red-headed woman grinned at me in a way that reminded me painfully of my mom and after thanking her, I quickened my pace.

After leaving my jacket and my bag at the garderobe, I took a flight of stairs upstairs. The cold marble stones sounded hollow beneath my combat boots, echoing in the quiet hallway and I raked my fingers through my unruly hair, wrestling it back into a curly ponytail before stepping out into a large spacious pale hall with tints of gold and bronze. A numerous amount of paintings, oil and otherwise, hung on the walls, golden plaques beneath describing the name and artist that made them.

I'd breezed past most landscapes, enjoying the wildlife and medieval portraits more and by the time I'd been there for a bit over an hour, my anger had died down to a rumbling irritation. Outside the rain had lessened to a soft pitter-patter against the windows of the museum and I listened absentmindedly to a guide who was guiding an elderly couple around. I'd followed them for a while, following the way the guide would explain the time in which a painting was made and what he thought was reflected in one.

I was perfectly content for a moment and stopped in front of a green landscape with three dark-cloaked people crouching in front of a narrow river. In the distance, dark clouds were gathered and somehow I found myself staring at it, head cocked to the side.

* * *

Even after the elderly couple had left, hurrying along the spacious hall to the next painting, I remained in front of it.

"What do you think, Luv?" A voice next to me inquired and I almost dropped my bag, twirling around to the man that had stopped next to me. He was taller than me (wasn't everyone), yet not that tall, his hands clasped behind his back. He wore a pair of dark jeans and a matching dark henley and as he turned to smile at me his lips spread wide enough that dimples appeared into his cheeks.

I rolled my shoulders, trying not to blink stupidly, profusely at him and said: "I— It's good I guess. Pretty accurate. A bit like nothing lasts forever?"

He pursed his lips indulgently, and I let my eyes flit over his face again. He was quite handsome, twenty-something, with curls the colour of burned sugar, the longer locks a blond caramel and along his square jawline was the suggestion of stubble. "I could follow the assessment."

"Hm,"

"You're alone?"

"Yes," I agreed, belatedly realising that telling an unknown man I was here alone might not be my wisest idea. Then again, after all the mumbo-jumbo I'd been through, I doubted a man not much older than me, would try and off me in a museum. He seemed amused as if he too was realising it wasn't exactly a wise thing to do.

"What do you think it means?" I asked, more out of courtesy than real curiosity. I was still a bit too annoyed with Tyler to find my usual curiosity.

"Life and what it means to be mortal."

"That's—" I mulled over my words for a moment before looking at him again, "—I suppose we both have a rather pessimistic view on the world."

That made him laugh, rich and strong, which brightened his face, eyes glinting: "What a view of the world we have, Sweetheart. This hardly the best example of Richard's work, though."

"You're from England?" I asked, and he waved to the next painting with two fishermen on a little fisher boat being pushed around on a very unstable, swirling sea. I fell into an easy step with him.

"I've been to a lot of places." He answered and my curiosity was truly piqued.

"That's very vague," I muttered and he grinned at me, waving his hands to a beautiful medieval painting, explaining how the period was palpable in the brush strokes. I gave him an amused smile when he lost himself a bit in the next one and at some point, as he offered me a cup of coffee, I realised I hadn't even asked his name. It felt a bit silly to try and ask him now and as he led me out of the museum I cunningly pointed at a Starbucks.

"Really Sweetheart?"

"Their coffee is good," I responded unapologetically and he shrugged before following me across the street, for all appearances indulging me. The street was still wet and the sky a swirling mass of dark grey, and we had to skip over the many puddles of dark, muddy water on the uneven sidewalk. However, inside the coffee shop, it was pleasantly warm. Beams of faint sunlight falling in through the dimmed windows and I rolled the sleeves of my button-up up over my elbows.

"Any suggestions?" He asked eyeing a woman who was tending to the scratched knee of a little boy before rolling his eyes at me. I sniggered, which made the mother's eyes flash in irritation and I turned towards the man again.

"Depends on what you like," I answered, ignoring the furious stare the mother was giving me and pointed at the colourfully decorated blackboard. "I'm quite taken with their Frappuccinos, but their hot drinks are good too. Perhaps a cappuccino with a shot of pumpkin spice or I don't know, hazelnut?"

He cocked his head to the side and I ordered an iced coffee without whipped cream and with an extra pump of hazelnut and waited patiently as my all-knowing art mystery man ordered his cappuccino with a pump of spicy pumpkin ('an autumn flavour').

"What name shall I put on the cup?" The perky blonde barista asked and I peered at him from my peripheral vision.

"Nick," he stated pleasantly and I grinned smugly. Mission accomplished.

I fell back in a booth at the back of the cafe and nursed my iced coffee with a content smile, while Nick was sniffing his drink with a look I'd call contempt. "I'm sure they didn't poison it."

He rolled his shoulders and I sat back, intertwining my fingers around the To-Go-Cup: "You said you went to a lot of places?"

"I did," he agreed and I curiously cocked my head to the side.

"Where have you been?"

"Several places in Europe, briefly to Asia, lived in New Orleans for a while. Quite enjoyed it there."

I nodded: "I've been to England for an exchange project. That was rather enjoyable."

"Rather enjoyable?"

"We didn't do a lot of sight-seeing. The school, boarding school, was in a village East and although I liked it, I didn't see much of the country."

"Were your parents comfortable with you leaving for Europe?" He asked and my shoulders locked, muscles tense waiting for the raw pain to constrict my stomach and make breathing difficult. It was there but for once, with someone who didn't know my parents or who hadn't meant to push me for a knee-jerk reaction to freeze, it wasn't as all-consuming.

"They died, almost a year ago."

"Ah," he responded, "I'm sorry to hear. No other family?"

"Oh, no, I do have some family. I've got a brother and a sister. We live with my aunt and she's wonderful." I softly explained. "And my uncle— I didn't like him at first, not so much at least, but now—"

"It sounds complicated."

I grinned and took a long sip of my drink: "It could be worse. Do you have siblings? You mentioned you'd travelled— How old are you?"

"You've got many questions." He told me and I shrugged unapologetically. His eyebrows furrowed in thought while a frown passed over his lips and he seemed to consider my questions for a while: "Let me see, I have three brothers and one little sister— I adore to travel, at some point the same old town gets boring and I'm twenty-one years old. And you, you look a little young for your private excursion."

Unsure if I should feel annoyed about that comment or not, I chose to absorb the information he provided me with and crossed my ankles: "I'll turn seventeen in three weeks so I am not that young."

"A minor," he told me dryly, obviously making fun of me and I took another long sip of my drink.

"Legally," I agreed, marshalling my thoughts a bit before continuing, "Do you study?"

"Art." I thought that was very vague and wrapped my arm loosely around my knee and he smiled. "It calms me."

"You paint?" I guessed, which would be quite fitting with all his knowledge of the works in the museum and he nodded in agreement.

"I do," and reached over to pick up a coaster and turned it around, revealing the unblemished carton underside before yanking a pen free from the pocket of his pants. I curiously stared at him as he crossed his legs and used his knee to settle the coaster on and I watched him curiously as he started to sketch.

"What are you doing?" I asked after a moment and he smirked balefully, reminding me of Jeremy when he tried to hide something from me and huffed. Men were all alike weren't they— just like children. "Really now—"

"Don't frown, Luv, it's unbecoming." He told me and I craned my neck. He was drawing a face and for a moment I was supremely impressed because he was almost exactly copying my eyes.

"You're good," I whispered, the awe in my voice heightening it and he grinned again. Good was an understatement. I knew no one who could draw like that and I'd drawn with Tyler for as long as I could remember. I would never say I was the best but it was my creative drawing that qualified me for the exchange program (and I had decent grades that helped a little bit too) and I was almost ready to tell him to move over and start explaining why he started with the eyes instead of the rounding of the face. "You're really, really good!"

"Move back to your original position, Luv."

I didn't argue and leant back, my hands fisting around my upper arms. The next fifteen minutes passed by quickly, with Nick muttering instructions to lower my head a bit, to smile, to pull my hair free from the messy ponytail I'd managed to pull it in and I laughed when he said something entirely improper about the annoying mother ('She and whoever shouldn't have bothered with those genes') who was still fuzzing over her screaming toddler.

"There. Here you go!" He announced and I jerked to my feet, hurried around the booth and leant my arms on the back of his seat, staring at my face. My hair was just as unruly as it was in real life, as it been ever since I'd had the questionable good idea to cut it and I blinked.

"Wow— I get why you are into art! This is so good!"

He smiled, offering it to me and I almost snatched it from his fingers staring at it happily. "So a sister?"

"Yeah," I agreed, "Elena, she's the oldest."

"Elena."

"Hm," I agreed, "I'm actually surprised she hasn't called me by now."

"Overbearing?"

"Older siblings are often like that, in my experience." I retorted before frowning. "Actually, younger siblings tend to do that too. My younger brother doesn't let me dote too much on him anymore either."

"Family is everything." He agreed.

I smiled ruefully: "I used to think family was more than just blood."

"More than blood?" He had turned in his seat, turning the ballpoint pen through his fingers and again, for all appearances, indulging me.

"Yeah, I used to think my best friend was practically the best family I'd got. We shared everything— Why am I even— I'm sorry, I don't know why I'm even telling you this. I'm sure you have more interesting things to listen to." I muttered, averting my eyes to the coaster again. From the artfully drawn lines of my oval face and almond-shaped eyes to my wealth of frizzy, curly hair.

"A bit of a luvrs' tiff?"

I almost laughed at that: "No, although I'm sure his mother thinks differently, we've never been lovers. Not like that. Anyway—" I bit my lower lip, staring at the colourful display of my cellphone. It was almost five o'clock and I still had to return home. A journey that would take me over an hour and I moved back to my seat, swallowed the last of my iced coffee and adjusted the straps of my bag.

"You only have one friend?" Nick asked and I shrugged. "How about your sister? Don't girls like to do things together?"

"My sister has other friends. Two actually— Oh, and a boyfriend of course."

"You don't approve?"

I rolled my shoulders: "It's not like that. Elena— her boyfriend is nice enough, but he has a big brother. I'm pretty sure there is a reason why almost everyone at school thinks she's dating them both." I pressed my lips together at that because while true, I didn't think my sister was stringing them both along, however, even I could see that there was a spark between Damon and Elena.

"Two brothers?"

"Yeah, Stefan and Damon—" I agreed, sticking the coaster in my wallet to preserve it and shouldered my bag.

"They don't have a last name?" His question was not strange per se, but it struck me as odd. I hadn't supplied him with my surname yet, he hadn't asked, and his curiosity at the vampire brothers—

However, the best way to get out of there would be to play along and who knew. Perhaps I was just cautious for nothing: "Oh, Salvatore— I do have to go. My aunt will lose her shit if I'm not home at seven sharpish."

"Hm," he hummed watching me with an expression I couldn't quite name before I pulled down the sleeves of my button-up and shrugged on my jacket. Outside the late sultry, afternoon sunlight and the blueish sky were reflected like mirrors in the puddles on the sidewalk and I managed a smile.

"Well," I said, zipping my jacket up as far as it would go, "it was nice meeting you, Nick. I hope you'll enjoy any further travelling."

"Niklaus, really."

"Niklaus?" I echoed dumbly and he grinned.

"Yes," he agreed, "Although usually, people call me Klaus."

I scrambled to my feet, my face blanching and he watched me like an amused cat. My breathing sped up and I made an attempt for the door. He appeared in front of me a moment later, intercepting me before I'd even made it across half of the room and I screamed. Vases and glasses shattered in the surge of magic that ran free and he grunted when it smacked him against the glass of the door. It cracked from the impact before cracking open. I'd never moved quite as fast, but I shouldered my way out of the Starbucks. In my haste, I almost slipped on the damp, uneven stones of the sidewalk. I was quite sure I'd never been this scared before and as I ran, I dared a look over my shoulder. A mistake on my part. He'd moved so fast, I only saw a blur and suddenly his arm wrapped around my waist, fingers of his left-hand curling against the underside of my ribcage while the other found purchase in my hair.

I froze when his lips trailed down the side of my neck, his breath fanning out over a tender, shallow spot: "Now, now, Luv, that wasn't very nice."

"Get off! Get off!" I shrieked and although several pedestrians looked up from my high pitched screams, their eyes were glazed and dazed to the point they averted their eyes. "Get off of me, please get off!"

"And let you run back to your little friends? No, I don't think so." He whispered and I tried to slow my breathing, concentrating on giving him a headache but he opened his mouth against my throat and I screamed when his fangs dug into my skin. It was painful, he wasn't gentle (which I realised Damon had been when he'd bitten me) and a sharp rush of pain shot through the adjacent veins in my neck. My mind was in shambles and I was quickly starting to feel light-headed and impossibly dizzy. Before I passed out, I managed to look at Niklaus' face; his eyes tinging the vainest hue of amber.

When I woke up again I was somewhere cramped and dark. My breath was shaky and shallow and I rolled onto my back. Inhaling deeply, I pressed my hands against the roof of wherever I was and kicked out. Which was a stupid move. My knee collided painfully with the metal above me and a zing of pain travelled down my calves.

"Fuck!"

I couldn't even stretch my legs all the way, and from the side a reddish hue was visible. I guessed I was in the back of a car. In the back of a car and I couldn't get out. My hands had been tied together. It didn't stop me from struggling against my bonds, hitting my knees several times more and moaning pathetically. The car beneath me was humming rhythmically, vibrating softly and the hairs on my arms stood on end. I tried to think of a spell I could use, but nothing came to mind and when the car stopped and I heard a door slam, I froze; almost too terrified to breathe. The gravel crunched beneath someone's feet and although I felt my heartbeat erratically against my chest, I had to do something. I closed my eyes. They were talking, but I couldn't hear what it was they were saying.

When the voices stopped, I was ready. The footsteps were coming my way and when the trunk was unlatched I kicked out as harshly as I could. He had been prepared for me, easily pushed past my flying legs and grabbed my ankles beneath one arm, before yanking me up and about by my wrists.

"Ruv, there is no need for that."

"There is every need for that." I spluttered back when the gag drew back and I felt my face flush. "You— You kidnapped me."

"Hardly," he tutted. "Calling it kidnapping, you make it sound as if it was an effort. Do people tell you often you're a bit too trusting?"

"Normal people cannot compel a fucking town!" I snapped back. "If you were a normal man I would have had nothing to fear when surrounded by so many people."

He pursed his lips as if he hadn't thought about that and I seriously considered trying to kick him where it would hurt most. That idea quickly lost its merit when veins popped up around his eyes and he yanked me to my feet. "Can you walk, sweetheart?"

He didn't seem to care for my reply and hoisted me up, my answer still stuck in my throat. There were still specks of blood, sticky-dry, on his chin and neck and I tried to push my heels into the soft muddy ground for purchase. That did not work, of course, and he easily carried me inside the house he'd parked in front. I felt as if I was being escorted to my doom.

_To be continued..._

* * *

**A/N: Isobel Flemming selling her children out since 2010. Mother of the year, honestly. But, Samantha doesn't know that. She might never know, but it was never really meant to be a secret. How else would Klaus have known to go after the witch of the family? Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this. At first, I was planning on writing a more thorough description of Samantha going after Jules, but then I reconsidered. When you're angry you often don't think clearly. I hope I managed to convey that with this chapter.**

**And of course, we meet Klaus.**

**Personally, I like Klaus. He's an arsehole for sure, but there are so many possibilities with his character. Such a lovely chance for a redemption arc and— let's face it. Klaus truly was the character out of nightmares, but he's such a great villain to write. According to the Martins' Klaus enslaved generations of witches to help him break his curse. What is one more in the grand scheme of things? As for Samantha trusting him. I think Klaus would know how to get people to trust him. Besides, all things aside, Samantha is only sixteen years old. In the end, she's still a kid.**

**Anyway, the next chapter next week!**

**I hope you all enjoyed this one and of course, let me know what you all think!**


	16. Chapter 16, Klaus

**A/N: Welcome back for another chapter^^ To all of you who're new to the story, again, welcome. I'm really pleased all of you are here and was happy with all the comments and continued support. You guys make my day!**

**As for my guest reviewers, I'm sorry I can't reply to you personally but know that your comments are greatly appreciated. **

* * *

**o.O.o**

* * *

Chapter Sixteen, **Klaus**

**I**t was dark now, and the evening had been filled with fog and swirling leaves and gusts of wind. Even now, seated on the dark sofa in front of a crackling fire, I heard the wind blowing outside and the rain pattering against the house.

I wasn't sure where I was, only that I'd awakened in the trunk of a dark car minutes before we arrived at this large, low-roofed house. It's walls bulged and its roof seemed jagged, with rich red bricks and large windows.

I had tried fighting him off, but his hand had come up to my neck, tightly holding me to his chest and bodily pushing me into the house.

I frowned, staring into the glow of the fire. My lips were tightly pressed into a thin line, fingers had found a tight purchase in the material of my denim shorts and one leg shook with nerves.

The vampire was busying himself in the other room, having no problem with the invisible wall that had been in the doorway when I tried to do a runner. I understood a witch had trapped me in the house, prevented me from getting out and I gritted my teeth.

"How long are you going to keep me here?" I asked angrily, knowing he could hear me just fine. He entered the room, still dressed in his khaki pants a grey henley and a leather jacket, although his hair was a shade darker like he'd recently showered.

"As long as I need to, Sweetheart." He answered dryly. "I can't have you collaborating with Katarina any longer."

"Oh, so that's why you took me here?" I asked sarcastically. "To keep me away from _Katarina_? Why not kill me? It seems silly to keep me here."

"You mean here where you can't escape?" He answered dryly before smiling, his canines glinting in the firelight. "Sweetheart, the longer you remain useful the safer you'll be. And what better way to ensure my Doppelgänger's cooperation when having the baby sister in my grasp?"

"How did you even—" My eyes widened. "You've been collaborating with Katherine too!"

"She was reluctant to tell me about you if that would make you feel better."

"Do you care either way?" I retorted gruffly and he grinned, suddenly leaning in.

"You're chatty," he stated and I watched in fear as the skin around his eyes turned a deep purple, littering with streaky veins. My heart started to beat erratically and his face got close to my throat. Too close really. "Mouthy is probably more the word." And then ran his tongue across the tender, puckered skin of his bite mark. It was still fresh and he grabbed my chin, forcing me to crane my neck for better access.

"No!" I muttered my attempts to struggle were futile. "Please stop!"

He didn't of course, and I felt an electric shock of sharp, pointed canines against my flesh. My back arched up against the back of the sofa. He bit me slowly, his teeth slowly digging into my skin.

The drinking itself didn't hurt that much, but it felt weird all the same. I was still a bit too dazed from the last time he fed on me and I curled frightened fingers tightly into his shirt.

He pulled back for a second, inhaling deeply: "You do taste wonderful, Love."

I tried to pull forward my magic, tried to concentrate on it but I must have been too weak to summon it. He grinned at me like a Cheshire cat, fingers tightening around my chin. "I'm sorry Love, no magic for you. Can't have you try any witchy things when you're with me, can I?"

"You took my magic?" I gasped in horrific surprise. He grinned again and lunged forward again, my back pushed tightly against the wood of the sofa and he pressed his lips to the wound again. He pressed himself up against me, cradling me against his chest and took several swallows before letting me go.

"Oh don't worry. You won't need it now. We're going to be best of friends, you and I," he told happily and I lay there slumped on the sofa, breathing hard.

"Tell me, how long have you lived in Mystic Falls?"

I glared at him, but certainly didn't want to be his breathing blood bag forever and pressed my hand tight to my neck: "My whole life."

"Good girl, you're learning. And a fast learner too." He grinned, "Very good. And you have two siblings right?"

"Yes."

"The Doppelgänger and a brother."

"Yes," I agreed again and glowered at him, "But you knew that already, why do you still need me?"

"What does Elena do in her free time?"

"Write in her diary and spent time with Stefan," I answered, while Nikaus' fingers slowly circled around the stinging bite-marks. I felt blood still welling up, running down the side of my neck, down my collarbone, and saturating the hem of my jacket and button-up beneath it. "Are you going to kill me?"

"Now why would I do that?" He asked happily and I shivered. Both from the cold and from fear and he finally leaned back. "You should make yourself comfortable while you're here. You won't be leaving any time soon."

I inhaled roughly: "Fine, how long will you keep me here? If you're not killing me and all."

"Indefinitely, Love."

I glared, I didn't know what else to do, and he jerked to a standing position, jerking his head to the side, indicating for me to follow him. I obeyed without a fuss, thinking obeying him would keep me safer and wrapped my arms tightly around my waist.

Niklaus (it was hard to define him as Klaus after the decent afternoon I'd had and odd to keep calling him Nick) prowled out of the room, holding open the door in a mockery of a gentleman to let me pass through it first and stopped at the foot of a large, wooden staircase: "Now, last room on your left there is a bedroom. Feel free to clean yourself up. Or don't, I find you quite delectable right now."

"Right," I muttered and peered at my bare, pale legs, "And am I supposed to wear these clothes all the time?"

"I wouldn't mind, Sweetheart."

"But I do," I returned softly, making a face. "Besides if you want to babysit a relatively healthy human, I probably need different clothes. It was warm this morning, but it isn't now."

He smirked at me "Hm, perhaps. Go shower baby-sister of the Doppelgänger. Up the stairs, second door to the right."

And I did. I swiftly padded up the stairs and shut the bathroom door behind me loudly. It was a spacious stone bathroom lit by fluorescent tubes and soon the shower roared to life and steam wafted around me.

I checked the lock twice, although I doubted it would keep out the psychopath downstairs, it made me feel a tiny bit better.

And then I dunked my head beneath the warm spray, yanked the shower curtain in place and hissed when it hit the sensitive skin of my throat.

The blood and grime made a rust-colored swirl around the white tiles and the shower drain and I scrubbed my hands harshly over the angry-red skin, probably reopening the wound but not caring enough.

When I was satisfied, I ran my fingers through my hair and when I felt refreshed at least, I shut the shower off. Wrapping myself into a plush cotton towel, I stepped out of the spacious stone shower.

I could feel my magic buzzing under my skin but I couldn't access it— Couldn't reach it, no matter how hard I tried. At least, I knew it was still there. However, Niklaus must have been working with a witch. A witch who was in better control of his or her power, which pretty much left a lot of people.

I might have been decent at doing spells, I was overzealous as well. Peering through the bathroom, I frowned. My short, high-waisted denim trousers were gone, as was my bloodied tank top. My face flushed a furious red and I stomped to the door. The lock was still in place and quivered slightly.

"Where are my clothes?"

I knew he could hear me, even though the door was closed and had no idea where Niklaus was. He didn't answer and finally the day, the anger, the fear, it wore down on me. I took a stuttering breath. I wanted to cry so badly.

I wanted to scream and cry and throw and— and punch my fist into the mirror even though it would hurt my knuckles. Slipping down the wall, hand clasped around my mouth to stifle my sobs I wished I had this bout of hysterics earlier— because now, half-naked and terrified, I had no idea what to do. I clasped my other hand tightly around my throat and I curled my knees up beneath my chin.

"Come on now, Love," his voice stated suddenly. I had no idea how long I'd even sat there, my skin swiftly cooling. "Come on, you have to come out eventually." He said, his voice coming from right outside the door and I curled my legs tighter against my chest, arms wrapped securely around my knees.

I sniffled, blinking through teary eyes: "Why? So I can run around naked? No, thank you."

"Little Witch, you can come outside yourself, or I'll come and get you." He threatened, his voice soft but that did little to ease my fear of him.

"I— I'm not done." I gasped back, scrambling to my feet, slipping on the stones, and catching myself on the tub. I froze when I noticed my reflection, my pallid face, my red-rimmed eyes, and the angry, reddened mark on my throat, just above my left collarbone.

I looked horrible and frightened and it just wouldn't do. He was already lording his superiority over me, making him see me like that would only strengthen that view. Inhaling deeply, I roughly rubbed the back of my hand across my eyes and snatched the comb from the sink.

It was without a doubt _his _comb, but I didn't care and started the process of untangling my dark hair, hoping the common movements would ease my erratic beating heart. Occasionally a tear would slip and roll down the curve of my cheek, but after several minutes, my heart rate slowed.

I'd just managed to stop the sniffing when the door creaked and was wrenched open and the Original stormed inside.

I squeaked, for a moment remembering my modestly was only protected by a fluffy towel and he was essential a man.

He caught my right arm with the efficiency of Matt Donovan catching the football and yanked me out of the bathroom, dragged me along the wooden landing and pushed me inside a dark-themed bedroom.

There was a large bookcase against one wall, a fancy detailed bed near the window and a few paintings were on the wall above said bed. My insides curled and a lump formed in my throat. From the large window to the right the black outlines of the trees gleamed in the moonlight.

Was he going to—

"Oh, so jumpy," he murmured, when his fingers skimmed over my still damp shoulder, "relax, Love."

Goosebumps rose to the forefront of my skin, making the tiny hairs on my lower arms stand up on end and he grinned. "Scared much, huh?"

I gave him a squeamish look. Pain was something to fear, of course, although he hadn't really man-handled me yet (with the difference in strength he could probably break my bones like they were twigs), but— I flinched violently when his hand came up to brush my hair behind my ear and slid a finger underneath my chin when I averted my face.

My heart sped up, gut clenching in dismay, because, oh God, I had no way of fighting him off. Light eyes bored into mine and for a moment it was like he was reading my face like a book. He probably could read my face like a book and his fingers tightly curled around my chin.

"Oh," he muttered and he cocked his head to the side, his eyes flashing in recognition; "Oh, that's why you're scared. You think I would force myself on you?"

"Most of what I've heard of you has not been pleasant." I whispered, the words escaping me.

"I may be many things," he whispered eventually, tapping the pads of his fingers against my cheek and I didn't dare to avert my eyes again, "but I have no need of forcing women to be with me in that sense. I've never been a rapist!"

"I— What?" I blinked profusely and he took a step back, waving his hand to the wooden closet.

"Take what you need."

"Are those yours?" I asked, still too thrown off I could not think of what to say.

"Yes, but if you'd prefer running around dressed in the towel—"

"No, no, they're absolutely fine," I yelped and not so subtle stumbled to the closet and almost disappeared into the rack of clothes. He stood there several seconds, seemingly amused before turning around and leaving me alone. Or seemingly alone. I didn't hear him move away either way.

Quickly, I rubbed myself dry, yanked a grey henley off a higher shelf and pulled it over my head. My search for bottoms that would be fitting took longer. In the end I found a pair of sweat pants I could tie tightly around my waist, turning the legs over several times, looking rather ridiculous.

Very ridiculous, I corrected when Niklaus laughed so hard I almost forgot he was a murderous original vampire and almost felt around for something to chuck at his smirking face. He'd left before I could act on that little slip and I sank down the wall and on the floor, the hems of several pants fluttering against my cheeks.

My teeth ground together and I curled my fingers tightly into the strands of my hair, sucking down each breath like a fish out of the water and counted. I counted till fifty until I thought I could face the world (aka Klaus again) and slowly got up to quivering legs. I had to be smart if I were to survive.

I had to keep calm to stay alive, especially if my family figured out I was gone. I hoped Elena would ask Bonnie to do a locator's spell, but— somehow, I doubted she would notice with everything that was going on.

Besides, I had done a runner before, no matter how temporary. I groaned again, almost flopping back into the closet: "Fuck!"

* * *

The positive point: after three days of walking on eggshells, I was still alive. The bad news, I still hadn't managed to get in touch with my magic again. Which was also the primary reason why I hadn't tried escaping till now.

Besides, it was hard to escape when it was magic keeping me locked inside a house. Klaus had left me mostly alone that day and I still had not felt or noticed anyone trying to reach me.

I thought I must have been able to notice someone trying to reach me with magic, however, I could be wrong.

The day was warm, pleasant and I had dressed in shapeless combat trousers and an equally shapeless sweatshirt.

Then again, all Klaus' clothes looked on me like I was drowning in them. It looked rather ridiculous if I was honest, but, at least they protected my modesty well. The downside, Klaus found it amusing. He made no secret of it either…

"Samantha?"

"Hm?"

"Are you sulking again?"

I supposed he found me amusing. "No."

"Could have fooled me, Luv." He grinned and fingered the hem of my sweatshirt. It was so big, it drooped off the left shoulder and I glowered half heartily.

"I thought you would be busy planning the demise of mankind?" I remarked and he smirked.

"Hm," he shook his head, "no, just your sister's."

I gnashed my teeth together and stared at my hand. God, I was a coward. I didn't look at him directly, flitting my eyes along the outline of his shoulders and settling at the base of his throat. "Why, you should give lectures about homicidal tendencies."

"Nah, that's Elijah's forte," he grinned.

"Elijah likes lectures?" I echoed and shook my head. "Actually that doesn't surprise me."

"Indeed, he's quite opinionated about— well, about everything."

"I can see how that would be a problem for you," I remarked drolly and took a few steps back.

He smirked and I watched him move past me without another word. At least, he hadn't tried to bite me again…

* * *

The eighteenth of May had began sunny but cold and while Klaus was directing his handymen like a conductor would conduct an orchestra, I was left in the passenger seat of a car. I'd been told not to touch, or move or try anything stupid and now I was glumly peering outside of the window.

The first few days as Niklaus captive (and breathing blood bag; because why not and apparently it was a fine way to deal with me when he thought I worked him on his nerves), I'd been terrified.

Niklaus was often cynical and malicious; he could lose his temper in the time span of a second, and when he lost control over his temper, he often ended up throwing pieces of furniture across the room.

His mood swings left me scrambling to understand and to react to, but he'd been cordial enough to not touch me in an indecent way. I supposed I might not be his cup of tea (not sexually at least; he did seem to find my blood agreeable enough) and I was quite thankful for it. Beside that the food he fed me was plentiful and varied; he made sure I got enough.

I sighed again and the door to the wheel was wrenched open and the devil himself took a seat: "Why the glum look, Love, we're taking you home."

"I am under the impression you're not actually taking me _home_."

"No," he agreed. He seemed to be in high spirits at the moment and started the car. At least he hadn't attempted to push me into the trunk of his car again. I shivered as he grinned almost manically at me. "But look at the bright sight, Love, you'll have a road-trip."

"Wonderful." How I wished to drawl something sarcastically at him. But with his mood-swings, unstable at the best of times, I didn't dare it, just glaring out of the window. At least I didn't burst into tears at every given moment and I breathed out slowly. I was dressed in an oversized sweatshirt.

Sliding off of one shoulder and my denim jeans which at least weren't ruined like my favorite button-up and my jacket were and I'd stopped arguing with him about sharing his clothes.

From what I gathered, if I pushed him too far I'd have to run around in my underwear (if I was that lucky of course). He was prone to mood swings like that and as he started the car I squeezed my eyes shut.

The lovely part about getting into a car accident, again, was that it made me nervous in one. Of course, Niklaus didn't know that.

"What now, Love, you think I'm that bad of a driver?"

"Me, my sister and my parents were in a car accident almost a year ago," I whispered, somehow hoping I could wipe that horrendous grin off his face. "Wickery bridge must have been slippery because my father lost the control over the car and it went over the bridge. My parents didn't make it. Elena was saved and how I made it, I have no idea. Excuse me, for being a little jumpy in a car."

"You were in the car with them?" His voice was low and slow, his smile indeed wiped clean off his face, but it did not really make me feel better. I found it really odd that he was looking at me with an expression I would describe as conflicted.

Perhaps it was the surprise that Elena had been there too. After all, he needed Elena for the ritual— but that was not what he'd said—

"Yes." I agreed softly. "So was Elena."

He pursed his lips, swapping the country road for the high road and I subtly drew my fingers over the healing wounds on my neck. He didn't say much to me during the drive, his face unreadable and his fingers tightly wrapped around the wheel. I'd often wondered what excuses my siblings and even my uncle— father— seemed logical to explain my absence.

John knew I'd gone after Tyler— I guessed he would just conclude I'd decided to stay over for a while and perhaps Niklaus had even sent him a text message (I wouldn't put it past him he'd even gone as far as to tell everyone my phone was about to die) cementing that belief even further (because, fuck, that was exactly like something that I would do).

I pressed my lips together and curled my fingers into the loops of my denim shorts, finally just closing my eyes, hoping to give myself some rest. I must dozed off for a bit, because when I woke up, we had veered off of the high way and were now in a high-class suburban sprawl.

We passed a large Starbucks and rubbed my eyes. Niklaus steered his car up a parking lot, the sidewalk and a stone path leading up to a large brick building to the right. A blueish Volkswagen was parked in front of it.

"There we are," Niklaus grinned and parked the car with a smirk.

"Where are we?"

He smirked again and in a flash, he was out of the car and stood next to the passenger seat, holding open my door: "Come now, Love, I can't tell you that, now can I?"

"What would it matter?" I muttered and hissed softly when he grabbed my upper-arm and all but dragged me to the blue Volkswagen.

The driver's side window was half down, framing a young dark-skinned girl with long curly hair. She was gripping the steering wheel like a life preserver, but when Niklaus neared her car, yanking me along by my, she dropped them, sitting back. Grinning, she lowered the window fully, and stuck her head out: "Ah, hello Love, and that's the girl?"

"No, I picked another one up," he sarcastically replied and the African-American girl rolled her eyes. I certainly hadn't dared to do that before, but Klaus didn't seem to mind: "Yes Greta, that's the girl."

"Hm," she started, eyes tracing over my face curiosity. "She has potential. Maddox was right."

"I need you to babysit her for the day."

"Babysit?" I spluttered, definitely feeling insulted and Klaus gave me a good shake.

"Yes, babysit." He agreed and turned to Greta. "She's mouthy."

"Hm, that's fine. I don't mind mouth. Besides, when was the last time I'd actually been around a girl?" She tapped her chin and I felt a bit of dread curl up my spine. "I can't even remember."

She flashed me another grin and gave Klaus a helpless stare. I wasn't sure who was the lesser evil in this unholy act. Klaus put his hand on my chin, forcing me to meet his gaze. His pupils contracted slightly: "You will do as she says and behave."

"Are you trying to compel me?" I asked and he sighed audibly.

"Such a pity, it didn't take."

_'Asshole!'_

"Klaus, why is she dressed like that?" Greta asked, sounding extremely amused and the Original averted his eyes to the car again.

"She needed to wear something, didn't she?" He grinned and I was once again reminded I looked absolutely stupid in his clothes. I didn't dare to voice that out loud, of course. With my luck he would probably have me strip them off and go about in my underwear. Yeah, definitely preferred to look stupid as opposed to that.

"God, you really like to irritate your witches, don't you?"

"Oh Love, you know you're my favourite." He smirked sending her a flirtatious smile and I gave him a quelling look. "Now, I have a delivery to await. You can drop her off once Maddox cleared the teacher."

"What?"

He gave me a little nudge towards the girl's car and without much do, I stalked towards the passenger's seat. I supposed getting the upper hand on a human girl was a far easier deed than getting the upper hand on Klaus.

Buckling in, I crossed my arms over my chest, feeling secure enough where I was to glare at Klaus over the girl's shoulder. I felt the utmost relief spreading out through my limbs when he finally turned around towards his car. Greta peered at me again, as the vampire's car roared to life.

"He's an ass," I muttered as Niklaus' car disappeared around the building.

"Not at all, Luv," she disagreed, her fingers running through her curly black hair, "he comes with operation instructions though. You just need to read the manual. Now settle back, we've got a lot to do."

I could tell she was a witch. Even if my magic acted as if it had been drained, and there was an open grimoire behind her, sitting on the backseat, frazzled looking with yellowing pages. It seemed like the most logical option to play along and I dutifully stared out of the window.

Sometimes I wished I was more like my sister. She was confrontational and courageous. I was not. I would stand up for myself on occasions and I could be courageous when getting up to my usual shenanigans, but— I crossed my arms over my chest and leaned back in the car seat. God, was I pathetic or what?

On the other hand, if I waited and was patient, good things might come to me. I swallowed, rubbing my hands over my knees. Patience could be most rewarding and although me having any patience might have been something against popular belief, but I could be patient.

"Well, then, let's start on that long road of yours," I remarked.

Greta's answering smile was sharklike and wetted my lips. Well, at least I could try.

_To be continued…_

* * *

**A/N: And that was chapter sixteen^^**

**Let me know what you think. I do love your comments:)**


	17. Chapter 17, The day of the Sacrifice

Chapter Eighteen, **The day of the Sacrifice**

**T**he day was sunny, unusually hot for a Mayday and I'd coiled myself up on the window-seat, legs thrown over the windowsill and eyes closed. No one had found me yet and I hadn't managed to escape. Not even when I'd been in Greta's care. Which was sad, wasn't it? She was not that much older than me.

She'd only just turned twenty and had she turned on me physically, I was sure I would have been able to fight her off. As it was, I hadn't managed to fight her off when she used magic on me, while mine was muted. Still there but unreachable. As it was, I hadn't managed to uplift whatever cloaking spell Klaus had told his witch to place on her. I'd managed to give her the slip when she'd taken me out to some creepy voodoo shop.

She'd been busy discussing some creepy ritual and I'd almost managed to slip away too, when she'd hit me with the worst migraine ever.

When I woke up, we were in Alaric apartment. Alaric's apartment where Klaus had body-snatched my history teacher and locked up my sister's evil shadow self. Which was— wonderful. Well, I supposed the rule Klaus had instated of Katherine not murdering me or removing body parts was somewhat helpful. The natural protection of a witch's resistance against compulsions was helpful too.

I exhaled noisily, adjusting my legs, the spring weather had edged into summer and my head lolled back against the wooden window pane. Canopies of the sultry, late-morning sun filtered in and felt bright yet perfectly comfortable against my closed, sunglasses-protected eyelids. Katherine was raiding the fridge and the closets for what I thought must have been alcohol. I didn't particularly care, with what, the apartment smelling strongly of the pungent scent of stale coffee beans and stretched my legs. With the lack of blood bags, Katherine had decided to become a coffee addict and when something toppled over, I peered curiously over the rims of my sunglasses.

Katherine peered back, dressed in a pair of dark skinny jeans and a blue tank-top. Her expression was odd and pushed my glasses up my head.

"What are you doing?"

"Bourbon," she grinned and turned the volume of the radio up. I'd been at Alaric's apartment for all but a day and was already ready to strangle Katherine. She drove me more insane than Elena did with her similar whiplash personality. Or, how old Elena would have called it, _being fun_. I'd call it reckless and stupid. Katherine swaggered over, waggling her fingers at me, inviting me to join.

I felt a brow rise sceptically. "Are you sure this is wise. With 'Original Murderous' out—"

"He didn't say I couldn't dance and drink, Samantha," she dryly replied and took a large swig straight from the bottle. "And honestly, do you need to be such a bore? I thought you were the fun sister."

"No, that was Elena—"

"Oh come on, didn't you steal a police car. Wreck to boot and danced on its remaining ashes?"

"Well, I do not require alcohol to be fun." I returned scathingly and stretched one leg towards the sun. I was quite sure it was the day of the sacrifice and no matter how much faith I'd put into Elijah's promise to keep my sister safe, I felt my nerves surge through my stomach. Taking off my sunglasses, I peered at Katherine again, at the bottle of bourbon she was waggling at me.

"Fine," I agreed, jumping off the windowsill, "but we're ordering takeaway too."

"Food won't stop my cravings, Sam!"

"Right," I agreed, "the blood thing."

"Yes, Sam," she agreed and I felt vaguely guilty. She pushed the bottle in my hand and I took a large gulp. The liquid burned down my throat and I exhaled gratefully.

"How long until you—"

"Until I rip your head off? And Klaus will start removing my limbs?" She sneered and I took another sip before stalking into the kitchen, set the bottle on the counter and filled a glass of water. Adding some salt, I sat on the edge of the kitchen table. Water with salt tasted disgusting but it should suffice for now. I could always order some iron-rich foods afterwards, I thought numbly. Bustling my sleeve up over my elbow, I met her gaze, her surprised gaze.

"What are you doing?"

"What do you think?" I retorted in the same scathing tone she always used on me and drew a finger over the pale inside of my wrist. "There; I'm offering."

"What?"

"Klaus told you, you couldn't attack me," I explained. "I'm offering. That's an entirely different story. There, loophole found." I told her dryly, thinking that offering was far less dangerous than waiting for her to lose her cool and snap my neck in the process. "Besides, there are such things as bandages."

The pale veins of the inside of my wrist stood out sharply in the hard kitchen light and dark veins started to crawl beneath Katherine's eyes. I'd learned that older vampires had a stronger control, but now— I supposed that whatever control she might have had, had just shattered.

She snatched my arm and tugged me close. I winced as she sank her teeth into the paper-thin skin of my wrist, without any restraint, crowding me up against the counter and my other hand found purchase on the edge of the wooden counter, my grip tight and my shoulders locked. It was weird— scary really hearing and feeling someone swallow blood from my veins. The excess of the dark, murky liquid, so scarlet and thick, started to drip down and, even over the loud, blaring music, I thought I heard it drip down on the hard wooden floor.

Katherine's grip tightened, tight enough to leave bruises, and I watched numbly as she followed the line the blood made, on its way down the side of my wrist towards the descend to the floorboards.

A bit of dizziness surged through me and I tried tugging at her hand. "Katherine," I whispered urgently and tugged at my arm, at her vice-like-grip, when I started to feel lightheaded, "Katherine, that's enough! Stop!"

She released me so suddenly, I stumbled over my own feet and my lower back hit the counter, hard. I clumsily tore of some kitchen paper and pressed it tightly against my wrist, making sure I could apply enough pressure before sitting down on one of Alaric's impersonal kitchen-chairs.

Katherine was still breathing heavily as if the bloodlust was still raging and I mentally went through the menu card of the Grill. I could order two burgers; they were salty enough to help my sudden case of anaemia to recover easily. Or at least, so I thought. Besides, I hadn't had any other choices.

Niklaus obviously wasn't used to dealing with humans and their appetites (although if alcohol and beans in a can were considered as satiable foods, then I supposed he was used to it), but at least he'd been considerate enough to leave a large amount of paper money behind. I could order food. And then eat it while Katherine had orders to compel the delivery boy to forget seeing us.

"How bad is it?"

"It's fine—" I shrugged, "—could you find me the first aid kit, so I can fix this up and we can order burgers and fries?"

"Right," Katherine mumbled, her face morphing into a sneer as she searched through the cabinets. I pressed my wrist and the reddened kitchen paper between my knees and reached for the landline, before dialing the number of the Grill and ordered two three hamburgers, extra fries and ketchup.

"You probably have the metabolism of a ferret if you can eat that and not get fat."

"It's not just for me."

Katherine scrunched her nose in disgust. "Wonderful—"

The food arrived twenty minutes later. I was patched up again, dipping fries into the Grill's special mayonnaise, and sharing the bourbon bottle of bourbon with Katherine. The vampire was well in the lead but had the added bonus of having a supernatural alcohol tolerance.

I had the added bonus of having been a party girl— whatever bonus that might have been. After dinner, we silly danced through the living room. Which had only been briefly interrupted by the arrival of Damon Salvatore and his bouncing girlfriend Andie Star (who I'd actually seen on the television before), demanding to know where Niklaus — 'Why the fuck do you call Klaus that?'

Damon had demanded — kept Caroline and Tyler captured and I'd felt rather ill. I hadn't even considered their safety, for some reason I'd expected Niklaus to just magically conjure a vampire and a werewolf, which of course, was stupid, and not go after people I know.

How the fuck could I have forgotten that Niklaus went after Katherine's family. How could I have forgotten? How could I not have thought about my friends' and family's safety?

To what I suspected was to get into my sister's good books again, Damon even offered to get me out of Alaric's apartment. Which wouldn't work, of course? If he tried, Katherine would fracture my spine (as ordered by Klaus) and thereby there was, again, a spell imprisoning me into the apartment. I had no choice but to sit tight.

And that is what we did when the Original returned home. Klaus obviously knew something was up as soon as he walked into the apartment. The music was still blaring loudly, the bourbon was gone, and Katherine and I were sitting quietly together, resting shoulder to shoulder, onto Alaric's red couch. Of course, we looked guilty as fuck. The Original's eyes narrowed perceptually and the line of his mouth tightened before he smiled at us, crossing the room.

"Well, well, isn't this cosy?" He grinned and I'd seen that smile before and curled my leg up, jostling the paper bag full of dirty napkins and even a few stray fries. "Does the music have to be so loud?"

Katherine, as if stung, turned the radio down immediately and Klaus swaggered further inside, smiling, dimples flashing. The last time he smiled like that, he'd kidnapped me and I curled my arm tighter around my knee. He moved into the kitchen and Katherine nudged me, beckoning her head in his direction.

'Why me?' I mouthed and she rolled her eyes as if a standoffish response from me would be less likely to end in (my) blood being shed, than a scathing remark from her. I sighed, crossed my arms over my chest and stepped into the kitchen, filled with the scent of roasted coffee beans. Klaus had taken a mug from one of the cabinets and was making coffee from the espresso machine.

It was such an odd sight, I stared. When he offered me the mug I accepted without even a raised eyebrow. He'd made me a cappuccino, the foam perfect and I sniffed slowly.

"Still think I'm trying to poison you?"

"Not really," I muttered, dipping my finger in the cappuccino foam and drew a silly picture around the rim before taking a long sip. It was good.

"What's the plan?" I asked slowly. "Where's Elena?"

"She's with Greta," he told me, so strengthened in his belief I could do nothing against him, he didn't even bother lying to me. I really hoped Elijah had given her that serum he was holding onto before Elena's little band of misfits did— whatever it was they'd done to the man and I wrapped both hands around the mug. I knew he had no reason to make sure Elena survived— had no reason to keep his word to me either, but I hoped— Klaus' eyes flitted over me with a feral sort of curiosity and suddenly, he snatched my wrist, catching my coffee mug with his other hand as it fell and dragged me close.

"Accident, Love?" He whispered, his thumb drawing over the bandage on my left wrist.

Even I heard the sharp intake of breath coming from the living room and I grimaced: "I—"

"Played living, breathing blood bag, yes, I gathered." He whispered, setting the mug slowly on the counter and invaded my personal space.

"I— I had to. You left us without sustainment—"

"And you offered?" His grin turned feral. "Are you still offering?"

My intake was sharp, almost painful and a horrible itching started crawling beneath my skin. I tried to pull away from him as he yanked the bandage off my wrist, ripping away the blood clothing with it and dark, pulsing veins started to ripple on the delicate skin around his eyes, the whites turning red. I tugged at my arm again: "No, Klaus, seriously no!"

I was already feeling a bit light-headed, but he just grinned, wrapping an arm around my waist, and took a long exhale from my wrist before dropping the limb and going for my neck. It didn't hurt as bad as the last time he'd bitten me, but I gasped either way when he drew blood, and my hands stilled just before I'd tried pushing him away (which wouldn't work anyway), my hands twisting into his shirt.

My heartbeat sounded loud in my ears, buzzing like a swarm of bees and I felt my knees buckle under my weight. He caught me easily, drawing me closer and angling my head for better access to my neck. I tried to keep my breathing even. Tried, being the keyword, but it was hard, especially as nausea started to grip at my insides.

When he let go of my neck I hung rather limply in his arms, my fingers fisted tight-knuckled around his collar and my head was lolled to the side. The blood, already cooling in the chilly kitchen air, dripped audibly on the floor and was only drowned out by my harsh, uneven breathing.

The same blood fanned across his mouth and chin when he looked at my face, grinning. "You're learning. Well done, Love." He crooned and crowed me up against the hard, wooden kitchen wall, bracketing my body with both arms.

My stomach lurched at the sight of my blood, smeared so casually over his face. Much like warpaint and his mouth twisted into something akin to a grin, but much darker than I'd seen before. My heart skipped a beat. I was pretty sure he'd taken a bit too much, with Katherine having fed from my wrist only a few hours before, and tried to keep my breathing even. His face swimming before my eyes—

"Tell me, Love, what was the human and Damon Salvatore doing here?"

"How— do you—"

"My nose is a lot better than Katerina's, Little Witch."

"Right," I mumbled, noticing that the blood from my wrist was being transferred to his red button-up. I could feel his body heat radiating from his skin through his blouse and I was now close enough to see the specks of light brown in his blue eyes.

Katherine was still in the living room, pretending I wasn't being bullied— again— and I inhaled deeply. I used to think I was strong. Physically and mentally. I used to think if I tried hard enough I could be strong— but I wasn't really strong enough. His expression turned a bit unreadable and I forcefully forced the conversation back to my sister. "What— What does it matter anyway? Where did Greta take Elena?"

He snorted: "Are you trying to interrogate me, Sweetheart?"

I grinned, the blood loss making me feel braver: "Is it working? Or are you planning on taking another bite out of my neck?"

"Still offering?"

"Wouldn't be recommendable, I think," I replied woozily and he eyed me suspiciously, eyes zeroing in on the erratically beating, adjacent vein in my neck, still bleeding freely from the recent bite-wound.

"No," he agreed and he said something else but the sound of my blood pounding in my ears was so loud, it drowned out what other words might have conveyed between vision swum again, and my body ached slightly.

His bracketing arms around me fell away and he looped an arm around my waist. "No, definitely not." He agreed and bit his wrist, offering the appendage to me.

I didn't fight when he pressed the limb against my lips, knowing he would probably force-feed me it if I tried resisting him. Still, I almost chocked when his blood coated the inside of my mouth, coppery and warm trickling down my throat and it tasted— odd. It didn't taste the way I would have guessed blood would taste like and Klaus' other hand pressed to the back of my head. It was slightly uncomfortable, its magic buzzing through my veins. When he let me go, his blood was dripped down my chin and I was coughing, only adding to the large stains at the front of my shirt — his shirt really.

I'd tasted Vampire blood before, but it seemed an Original's blood possessed a power, even my human tastebuds noticed. He drew a finger across my newly healed neck, and for some reason, my heart was racing, beating fast against my ribs, sweat beading at my hairline.

"Again, Sweetheart, why was Damon Salvatore here?"

"He wanted to know who your star players were," I whispered.

"My star players?"

"Your witches, I assume. Tried to get me out as well. Thought it would be helping Elena overcome some grievance with him— I don't know—" I stated, knowing that the best way to lie was to use as much truth in your lies as you could. I'd always been able to outmaneuver my peers, but even I was wary to try Klaus on. Nevertheless, that would not stop me from trying.

"Well, I can ask him myself, can't I?" He stated and I frowned.

"What?"

"I wasn't aware you were invited in," Klaus demanded loudly, licking his bloody finger and stepped away from me. I breathed out gratefully and followed him from a safe distance. The front door lunged open and Damon Salvatore flashed into the living room.

I gaped at the eldest Salvatore brother stupidly, I couldn't believe he would come here while Klaus was there. I might not have known Klaus could tell he'd been here— but Damon— Probably didn't know either. "Are you seriously that stupid? What are you doing here?"

"Hello to you too," Damon sneered and stalked up to Klaus, eyes flicking briefly over to the blood on his chin and then to me, but I wasn't his main priority. To Damon, no one except my sister was his main priority and I rubbed my hands together. "You need to postpone the ritual."

Klaus smile turned predatory, eyes flashing: "Didn't we already have this conversation?"

"Yeah," Damon agreed and I averted my eyes to my wrist. Blood crusted to unblemished, pale skin. "But that was before I rescued your werewolf and vampire and killed your witch."

My eyes squeezed closed, my breath escaping me in a grateful sigh. That meant my sister would live another day, didn't it?

"Excuse me?"

"And you can kill me for it. I don't care. It was all me." Damon sneered stepping even closer to Klaus, who looked frightening, with blood smeared across his faces and his cold blue eyes seemed amused.

"Katerina, Samantha, give us a moment," Klaus said, his eyes fixated on Damon. Katherine hurried away, grabbing my wrist in passing and yanked me after her, back into the kitchen where a small pool of blood was drying on the wooden floor. I sat down beside the door, side of my head turned to the small gap and Katherine sat down in a kitchen chair.

"I knew one of you would try to stop me," Klaus said, again sounding amused. "It was just a fifty-fifty guess on who. The nice thing about werewolves is they tend to travel in packs."

Soft gasps and moans filled the living room and I curiously peeked through the gap. Both men were now standing in front of the living room table, staring at the open laptop screen. Damon's face looked rather sickly. "Jules."

I froze and remembered a young woman in her mid-twenties with blue eyes and medium length blonde hair, soaking wet from the rain, looking apathetically as she stepped in the middle of the road, just before I had my car accident. My fingers spasmed, curling into fists and my nails dug into the palms of my hands. My anger had dissipated over the last three weeks, so had the need for vengeance, but a large part of me was happy it was her and not Tyler—

Although, where was Tyler? He'd been travelling with Jules, hadn't he? My mouth turned sandpaper dry when I understood what Werewolf Damon had saved.

"When you spend a thousand years trying to break a curse, you learn a thing or two." Klaus grinned, unperturbed with Damon's interference. "The first rule, always have a backup. Back-up werewolf, back-up witch…"

"Back-up vampire." Damon finished off Klaus' sentence and I closed my eyes trying to push my mounting anger away.

"I've got that covered too," Klaus whispered and I almost didn't get that. He flashed forward and with a snap, broke Damon's neck, knocking him out cold. I struggled to my feet, pushing the kitchen door open, holding onto the doorjamb so tight, my knuckles turned white.

"What did he mean by that?"

"Love?"

I cleared my throat, feeling the magic surge through my veins even though I couldn't reach it. "You were going to sacrifice Tyler?"

Klaus smirked: "Ah yes, the boyfriend?"

"No," I disagreed stepping further into the living room, my eyes averting to the laptop screen. My hands trembling, my face flushing in anger. Jules was writhing on a dark ground, a cave probably, her face clammy and expression as if in agony, "Why isn't she turning?"

"A spell," he answered absentmindedly, again not lying to me.

I felt my anger wane slightly, my eyebrows furrow together as I understood something. "Tyler and this vampire were bait?"

"Very good, Sweetheart." He agreed patting my cheek and my insides wrung together.

"Then who's your back-up vampire?" I asked, my eyes flitting over Damon's form and Klaus sneered at him.

"Yes," he muttered, turning to Katherine who'd entered the living room having found another bottle of Bourbon. "Katerina, I need you to call _Aunt _Jenna," Klaus ordered, offering her his cellphone— no Elena's cellphone— and I froze.

"What?" I whispered as Katherine took it and I watched her scroll through the contacts, the brightness from the device lighting her face in a strange greenish hue. "What!?"

"I'm a vampire short, Love," he admitted, flippantly rolling his shoulders and I shook my head, trying to think of something to say, something to do.

Aunt Jenna, who loved Elena, Jeremy and me, who tried her hardest she could to take over the tasks of our mother. She'd dropped everything, practically putting her own life on hold and took up where my mother had left off. If she got a phone call from Katherine, who sounded or could sound exactly like Elena, she would come over immediately. Would rush into danger because she thought her niece needed her and my stomach turned violently.

"No!" I gasped and crossed the room catching Klaus' wrist (even though he could easily shake me off). "No, please! You can't do that!"

"I can do whatever, I like, Sweetheart."

"You can't take another one of our family! Please, Jeremy needs someone— Needs Aunt Jenna— Please, you can practically take anyone you like! But not her! Not another one of our family!"

"I could," he agreed and Katherine had stopped typing, "but don't you think it's almost biblical? Aunt and niece, both die for the greater good?"

He was toying with me, baiting me. Reacting, meant giving him power, meant pushing him and ensuring Aunt Jenna's death. I had to play it well. I wished I could manipulate him. I just wasn't sure how. I just— "I— Aunt Jenna, she isn't our real family, Klaus." I stuttered out, face paling, bile raising. "Me and Elena? We actually are blood-related. We're actually siblings. What's more biblical than that? Please, I implore you—"

"I need a vampire, Love."

I looked at Damon, unconscious on the floor and he sniggered. "Can't use him, Sweetheart, he's as good as dead."

My breathing had turned rapid again and I knew he could hear the erratic beating of my heart, but I managed to stare back at him unflinchingly. "Then use me." I tried. He must have realized I'd practically offered him my _services_ just a second ago. Perhaps I wasn't clear enough. "I'm her sister. Her real sister—"

"No."

I let out a hollow laugh at his refusal, having expected it and all and Katherine gave me what I thought might have been an almost sympathetic look. "Please, I do anything!"

"Anything huh?"

"Yes," I agreed rapidly, hearing my blood rushing in my ears again because I would. I would betray anyone I needed to betray. I would do whatever it took, go through whatever lengths in order to keep Aunt Jenna safe. And Klaus knew that. "Please!"

"I must admit, Love, you look quite fetching, begging like this."

How much I wouldn't have loved to hit him. I crossed one arm over my chest (lest chance I would actually act out on the impulse) and I felt the oversized sweater slip off my shoulder. The fingers of my right hand were still wrapped around his wrist and he yanked me closer, his nose brushing past mine. I was not entirely sure if he meant to do that or not, but I didn't have the time to dwell on it. My shoulders were squared and I met his eyes even when they darkened. I didn't know what it was he saw or whatever he would ask of me to safe my aunt, but after a moment, he leant back. "Fine, but Sweetheart— I will collect."

I didn't doubt that for a second and released a jagged breath when he turned to Katherine: "Never mind. I'll be out."

I waited for Klaus to leave the apartment and then turned to Katherine, blinking back the tears that blurred my vision: "Do you think he'll—"

"Keep the end of his deal? I can't say."

I wiped the back of my hand across my stinging eyes and bit my lower lip. I really was a horrible person, wasn't I? I truly was…

_To be continued…_

* * *

**A/N: And that was chapter seventeen. I hoped everyone enjoyed. As to everyone who commented on this story, thank you so much! I'm a bit behind on replying to everyone, but know your words inspire me. They make me work. They keep me inspired to write. So thank you so much!**

**I know no one is obligated to leave a review, but, getting reviews is one of the only ways to get better. So, if you want to, let me know what you all think! **


	18. Chapter 18, Saving a Life

**A/N: Chapter nineteen. Like always let me know what you all think. T****hank you for your comments and kudos. ****They inspire me to write so much^^ Can't thank you enough for it.**

* * *

**o.O.o**

* * *

Chapter Eighteen, **Saving** **a Life**

**T**he moon shone brightly at the horizon, steadily rising into the sky. I'd been leaning over the counter in Alaric's kitchen, fingers tapping rapidly against the rough wooden edge when I felt it. Sudden and strong and it took my breath away for a moment and flooded my nerves. My magic had been blocked for two weeks, with no way to access it, but now— It ran through my veins freely. It was probably just my feeling, my ecstatic feeling, but it felt almost as if the walls of the apartment shook and shivered around as my magic expanded around me. However, after a few seconds, the weird vibrations disappeared and I was still standing, leaning heavily on the counter and the fingers of my left hand tightly wrapped around a lukewarm glass of water. I supposed I must have made a sound because Katherine appeared beside me, eyebrows furrowed together and brown doe-eyes wide.

"What just happened?"

Or perhaps I did make the walls shiver and I slowly turned towards her: "My magic—" I whispered, my heart pounding in my ears, "—it's back!"

Katherine's eyes widen and I knew she was thinking what I was thinking. I'd been rather crafty with giving aneurisms. If I wanted to, I could run away now. Could disappear into the night and hide back at home. Could check if Jenna was alive and if not— I could plot and I could hope to become strong enough— but if she was I would jeopardize her life again. Klaus was known for his ravenous hunger for retribution. I couldn't let my family take the brunt of that, but I could do something else—

"Give me your phone!" I whispered urgently and already held up my hand to get what I wanted from the curly-haired brunette. "Please!"

"I— I don't think I can," Katherine started and I glared at her, the windows doing their familiar rattling as magic surged freely around me.

"He didn't compel you to not give me a phone. I won't try to run. I'll just need to call— I need to call her!"

Katherine dropped the phone in my outstretched hand and surged away. Alaric's bedroom door slammed closed and I dialed Jenna's number. My heart was slamming quickly and rather painfully against my breast-bone and my fingers wound so tight around the device they turned a ghostly white.

"Hello?"

"Aunt Jenna?"

"Sam? Oh my God, Sam!" She whispered and I felt tears burn my eyes.

"Aunt Jenna, are you all right? Are you still human?"

"Am I still human? Honey—"

"Please, humor me!"

"Yes," Aunt Jenna finally admitted and I squeezed my lids together. He'd kept his word! He'd actually kept his word and hadn't used her— but— There was also something wrong. My magic was back and I thought that could only have happened because Greta had failed. Had died… Or perhaps it had been the warlock who'd bound my magic? In the end, it didn't matter—

I must have sobbed because Jenna was already whispering sweet nothingnesses at me and I felt my knees collapse. A shiver of pain shot up my spine when I dropped on the cold, stone floor and the beginnings of a migraine started behind my eyes. "I'm so glad to hear your voice!" I whispered finally and then the phone was ripped away from Jenna and another voice started to whisper to me.

It took me by such surprise and I felt my mouth slack open. "Uncle John?"

"I'm so glad to hear your voice. Even if—"

"Is he going to sacrifice you?" I gasped in undiluted anger and shock, but the sharp intake of his breath told me that— no, he wasn't a vampire and no, he wasn't going to be sacrificed. He was going to give up his life to give Elena hers though.

"Wait, what now?"

"It's the only way— Damon—" Uncle John explained and told me how Damon Salvatore forced her to drink his blood. How Elena Gilbert had now vampire blood in her system and I squeezed my eyes shut. Of course, Damon… The vampire who was sprawled out on the living room floor, unconscious, neck snapped. He'd come, had tried to stop the sacrifice in his Damon-way and it had backfired. Spectacularly, if I may say and slowly I got up to my feet.

"There have to be a zillion other ways!" I interrupted his rant, "Let me think for a moment— How long do we have?"

"Not long— Bonnie reckons four hours, five at the max."

"Okay, I'll— I'll think of something!" I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to think of what to do.

My lower lip trembled as I hurried into the living room ignored Katherine, who was running her index finger along the rim of her shot glass and went for the door. Katherine flashed in front of me, her face tight and I breathed out hard. "I—"

"I can't let you leave, you know that."

"No," I disagreed, "You can't let me escape— I'm not escaping. I'm going home to get my grimoires and come back."

"He compelled me, stupid girl," Katherine told me and I pressed my lips together. I was quite sure I could overpower her but—

"Fine," I mumbled and turned Elena's phone over again and scrolled through her contacts until I found Bonnie's number.

The dial tone rang three times before Bonnie's soft voice answered: "Elena?"

"Close. Hi, Bonnie," I answered and sat down on the floor again, back against the wall. The lights flickered and the bourbon started to boil, magic sizzling through my fingertips. "I need your help! I know of what happened with Damon and Elena and I know Uncle John— I know he's quite prepared to— Oh for Fuck's sake, I'm a witch too Bonnie and I need you to help me to come up with something that would keep everyone alive. Uncle John as well."

"You're what?" Bonnie's voice demanded and I heard someone mutter something in the background.

"Yeah," I muttered irritably, "I know. It used to be a shocking revelation to me too."

"Give me the phone,"

I recognised Jeremy's voice now and I curled my legs up, pressing my chin against my knees: "Just put me on speaker, Bonnie, there are more important things to do."

"Did he hurt you!?" Jeremy demanded the moment I was on speaker and I pursed my lips. He had, several times actually. Used to drink my blood like some kind of punishment, but he'd never really hurt me as bad as he could have.

"No," I finally settled on, "He just kept me here. Propped up and playing house with Katherine— Listen, it doesn't matter, Jer. I know he wants something from me— or wants something on a later moment, but— but that doesn't matter. What is happening to Elena and Uncle John matters more! So, there must be another way!"

"There isn't, Samantha," Bonnie whispered, her voice sounded strange to me, "I've gone through every spell— Every last one of them—"

"Oh please," I interrupted, "If there is a potion that can bring something back to life then there has to be a spell to do just that as well."

"Not with vampire blood in her system."

"Vampire blood is essentially magic too, isn't it?" I asked suddenly and Katherine looked up at me from across the room. She was crouched down beside Damon trying to feed him some leftover blood (it wasn't much) still left in one of the discarded blood bags. "Vampirism has to be a form of magic," I whispered. "Just as Werewolfism is. There has to be a way. What if we can separate Damon's blood from Elena's? Then she wouldn't be waking up in transition, she would—"

"Not wake up at all," Bonnie finished for me.

"We could use that though!"

"Yeah," Bonnie whispered and I heard the flutter of pages being turned quickly, "yeah, good point."

"There is a spell to resurrect someone." A male voice suddenly said and my breath hitched. Luca Martin, because how was I ever going to forget his voice? His bleeding form on the library floor still haunted my nightmares and forced me awake at night.

"Luca?"

"Yeah," the voice stated after a moment and I gripped the phone even tighter against my ear, "Listen, I'm sorry for what happened in the library. I realize—"

"No, we were equally to blame," I stated. "I'm sorry about your dad!"

"Right," he whispered and I heard him say something else (probably to Bonnie).

"Are you sure?" Bonnie asked and I frowned (definitely speaking to Bonnie), even though I couldn't see their faces, I could practically feel the tension through the phone.

"Sure about what?"

"Bonnie needs to take down Klaus, resurrecting someone is hard. It's not done easily." He explained and I thought he might have taken the phone from Bonnie and turned her off from speaker. "Listen, I know Klaus has you and I know from Damon that you're stuck but—"

"You want to channel me?" I asked slowly, understanding enough about resurrecting, to know it took an enormous amount of magic. A truly enormous amount of magic.

"Yes," He agreed and I sucked my lower lip between my teeth. "While Bonnie takes down Klaus, we do a resurrection spell. Are you still at Alaric Saltzman's place?"

"Yes, I am, but Katherine is here too."

"That's fine. I'll come to you." He stated and I heard both Bonnie and Jeremy argue about that. Arguing that Klaus could come there— That Katherine was there but he ignored their pleas, told Bonnie she was up and suddenly the line went dead. I was rather terrified and Katherine was looking at me with an odd combination of respect and fear. An odd combination of remembrance and worry. Damon was nowhere in sight, must have flashed away without me even noticing and I wasn't sure but my hands trembled and I flopped back on the soft scarlet sofa. Luca arrived fifteen minutes later, trembling and telling me he had the right Grimoire (I got the slight impression he and Bonnie were dating) and told me about the spell. Resurrecting a being was considered Dark Magic, the spell going against the laws of Nature (all living things must die).

Katherine stayed blissfully out of the way (she seemed desperately agreeable to keep my sister human) and I drew a circle of salt on the floor before sitting in front of him. He'd brought me a lock of my sister's hair and we used my blood to bind her, to use our blood link to draw her back. I breathed in slowly, trying to get used to the heady feel of my magic again (to the magic I could access again) and Luca held out his hands to take mine.

I would learn that night, resurrection magic did take a lot. A lot! When we were done and blood was pouring out of my nose and down my chin, I felt drained. Luca had taken the lead in the spell, face having gone pale but his smug smile made me think it had worked. He dropped backwards in a dead faint. I too felt faint and flopped forward, pressing my cheek against the wood-paneled floor.

"You all right there, little witch?" Katherine piped up.

"You're taking to that pet name too?" I mumbled and clumsily tried wiping my face.

"Hm, it fits you," she remarked drolly and toed Luca's slack face with the nose of her shoe. "You might want to get him out. If Klaus finds him he'll kill you both."

"Oh," I mumbled and, ignoring the black spots dancing at the edge of my vision, used my last magical strength to push Luka into the vacant apartment across the hall. It was just precaution, of course. If everything went right, Klaus would be death and everything would be all right when I woke up. Only— it wasn't—

When I managed to lift my heavy eyelids, the air was thick and musty and I was still laying on the wooden floor. Klaus, a very much alive Klaus, was hovering above me, looking at my face with a frown furrowing his eyebrows and I almost groaned. So, they'd failed in killing Klaus?

Of course, they had—

At least, I thought groggily, we hadn't failed in getting Elena back from the death. I could still feel Elena's steady heartbeat from our blood link.

"Magic's back, Love?"

And he was aware of my magic. Gone was the element of surprise, but then again there was the obvious trace of blood ghosting around my nose and I hoped, no prayed he would not figure out what I'd done. I groaned softly: "What happened? It struck me so suddenly—"

"My witches are dead."

My eyes widened and I tried to roll over on my side, but I couldn't. The wood beneath me was surprisingly comfortable against my heated body and I let out a long exhale. Klaus was still looking at me with that suspicious light filling his eyes and I inhaled deeply. "I see," I mumbled belatedly and he tucked a wayward curl behind my ear.

"So now your magic is again strong in your veins—"

"It was always there," I groggily replied.

"Wonderful," he sarcastically drawled and stooped down even lower to curl an arm under my knees and draped the other beneath my shoulders, carrying me against his chest. I slowly wrapped one arm around his neck, keeping my head from lolling painfully and my nose pressed against the collar of his shirt. He was warm, his heartbeat even and his shirt smelled odd. I was quite sure it wasn't the shirt he was wearing before, but I was too tired to care. Before I went under in the recess of darkness that surrounded me, clogged my mind, I felt the scratch of his stubble against my cheek as he leant forward. "When you wake, Little Witch, we need to discuss our little deal."

"You kept your word," I mumbled, wiping the back of my hand across my mouth.

I didn't bother trying to cling to his words any further, and when I woke again—

I was tucked in into Alaric's bed. Both Katherine and Klaus often sent me there (both acting like a parody of my parents), but none of them had ever tucked me in like I was a child. I wasn't sure if I should be amused or annoyed and slowly sat up. I couldn't believe they hadn't managed to deal with him. I'd thought I would be free now and even with my magic back, I didn't think I could overpower him. I breathed in slowly and pushing my feet over the edge of the bed. Letting my eyes adjust to the darkness, I froze when I noticed a show in the back corner of the room. A person-sized shadow and— the light flicked on a moment later.

Klaus was sitting on one of the kitchen chairs, straddling it in a way men often did when showing off dominance. "Good morning, Sweetheart," he greeted pleasantly enough.

I made a face at him and curled my legs up under me: "You tucked me in?" It seemed silly to mention it now, but I couldn't help it. "I gather your little ritual worked?"

"I gather you thought otherwise."

I pressed my lips together, magic prickling under my skin and his smile turned predatory, wordlessly challenging me to try it. "What time is it?"

"Six-thirty."

"Really? We're doing this at six-thirty in the morning?" I grumbled and kicked the comforter away.

"As good as any time, Love. What not a morning person?"

"Not this morning," I grumbled. It was six-thirty on May the 28th. '_Happy birthday to me…'_

"Oh?"

"What do you want?" I asked. He was a Hybrid now, the plan against him had failed and Katherine was gone, I didn't sense her— had she just left me? Couldn't she at least have given me a heads up? My magic roared to life and the lamp of the nightstand flickered on and off.

"Don't be snippy, Love," he answered, "I brought you a little gift."

"Yeah, did you bring the antidote too?" I retorted huffily and he grinned, showing me a small package. "What is it?"

"Wouldn't be a nice surprise, if I spoiled it now, would it Love?" He smirked and I accepted it slowly, weighing it in my hand. He didn't look as if he wanted to murder me, but, then again, he hadn't looked like a homicidal maniac when I'd first met him either.

"What's the occasion?"

"Your birthday, of course."

I hadn't known he'd known when I was born and after staring at him for a little while, I finally managed to tear off the blue wrapping paper, my eyes widened. A mobile phone—

When my parents had been alive, we would go to the small bakery at the corner of our home, to buy birthday cupcakes. Mom would decorate them with blue star-shaped candles and Elena would always snatch the orange frosted one that tasted like a pomegranate— and then dad would give me their present because of course, I got presents. Last year Aunt Jenna had given me their present, an ankle bracelet with little birds, sparrows, which I wore every day, but—

They'd never given me a phone. I'd never requested a phone. Perhaps they would have, had I asked, but no one I knew, especially not someone who wasn't related to me, had ever given me a mobile phone for my birthday. Especially not the latest model of an iPhone available, complete with a pretty phone case and all. I slowly traced my finger over the figure of a mockingbird (how the hell did he even know birds fascinated me) and looked back at him with wide eyes.

"I can't—"

"Can't what, Sweetheart?"

"I can't accept this!" I whispered and I wanted so desperately to push the phone (with the lovely case) back into his hands. He was, clearly, trying to bribe me.

"Of course, you can!" He disagreed and suddenly leant forward, brushes his lips against mine in a mockery of a gentle kiss, but the contact surprised me. Shocked me, and it was only his hand wrapping around mine, keeping the phone from dropping to the wooden floorboards. Not once had he touched me inappropriately or even remotely sexually and my face flushed scarlet. Breath escaped me in a soft gasp and as he moved back, his nose slid along mine. He remained in my personal space, his breath fanning out over my mouth, and I couldn't tell what it was he was trying to do.

"I'm afraid, I need you to remain here." He told me. Five whole seconds had passed. I knew I'd counted them and he slid his fingers across my cheekbone, tucking a lock of hair behind my ear. "And I need you to be a good girl. Can you do that, Love?"

"What? You're letting me go?" I replied dazedly, stupidly. And being a 'good girl,' was he asking me to do my homework and not skip school quite as often as I used to do. "What!?"

His grin turned victoriously. "When I come back— and I will, I'll call on you. You know that favor. But for now, I need you to keep me posted."

"On what?"

"On what Damon Salvatore does." He told me as if that should have been obvious and patted my nose. "I've taken the liberty to put my number in your phone. Now, be a good little spy, all right?"

"I—"

"I could still kill your aunt. Quite easily actually."

"Okay."

"Good girl." He said again and finally took a step back. Only when he was out of the door, leaving me standing in Alaric's bedroom, did I finally dare to breathe again.

_To be continued…_

* * *

**A/N: Next chapter, next week^^**

**As always, let me know what you think!**


	19. Chapter 19, Elena's 18th birthday

**A/N: Hello everyone and welcome back! An update, much faster than I'd usually update. ****Thanks for all the reviews, alerts, favourites after the last chapter, they made me work so much faster. Like always, ****(constructive) feedback is truly appreciated. ****After all, feedback makes for a better story^^**

* * *

**o.O.o**

* * *

Chapter Nineteen, **Elena's 18th birthday**

**C**oming home was like stepping out the yellow bus after scouting camp. It made me feel like I could breathe again, after so many hours cramped into a small seat, with children yelling around me. I had hailed an Uber, flopped onto the passenger seat with the window rolled down, and warm sunlight flooding into the car, and had dared, after several minutes of talking myself into it, to call my uncle. When he'd answered the call, I almost couldn't speak— I couldn't and he'd thought some childish prank-call was being delivered so he ended the call immediately. But at least, he was alive— which must mean the spell had worked and Elena hadn't needed his life-force—

Or it meant she was a vampire and all of us had buggered it up—

I'd been quite content, eyelids closed and warm sunlight grazing over my cheeks as the car purred happily beneath me. I almost didn't dare to open my eyes when the Uber pulled up in front of the house, because what if Elena hadn't come alive a human? A vampire had a heartbeat too, hadn't they— They functioned pretty much the same with a good bloody diet.

The über driver purposely cleared his throat when I still didn't make a move to get out of his car after he'd killed the engine and I peered at him frightfully.

"Honestly, what happened to you, Kid?" His face was wilted and sun-kissed.

He didn't look unpleasant though and I gave him a small smile: "I— nothing, I'm sorry, I was— just a bit preoccupied I guess."

"Of course," he agreed and I hopped from the car, pressed some paper money in his hands (it was too much but I didn't really care), and strode across the lawn and up to the front-door, with a purposeful walk. The gardens were in bloom, the scent of flowers heavy in the air, and after tucking a lock of hair behind my ear, I unlocked the door and walked inside. The house smelled strongly of disinfectant and a flowery detergent and slowly, I moved into the kitchen. A fresh bouquet of roses stood proudly in a pale green vase on the table and the counter was gleaming as if someone had just thoroughly cleaned it. Even the various coffee mugs which were always full of coffee stains, stood upside down in the drying rack, glinting ominously and I sucked the side of my lip between my teeth.

"Hello?"

It seemed stupid now that I'd expected everyone to be home. They were probably still at the boarding house, as Klaus had mentioned casually, and I flattened my fingers over the grey henley I'd pretty much stolen from the psychotic Hybrid. After a moment, I looped my fingers in the pockets of my denim shorts and strolled out of the kitchen.

"Sam?"

He was standing at the top of the stairs, his face pale and with a gasp, Jeremy rushed down to hug his sister tightly. Really tightly, because I was pretty sure I heard my shoulder blades grind together, but I didn't care. Jenna was the next to come down, her hair pulled up in a miserable bun, but otherwise, she looked all right and she almost hugged me harder than Jeremy had. I patted her back awkwardly, trying to inhale some much-needed oxygen and then I noticed Elena appear at the top of the stairs. She was dressed in one of their father's old sweatshirts and short pajama bottoms but— she was alive.

"Samantha?"

"No," I retorted dryly, blinking back against the horrible burning of tears, "it's Charlie from across the street, I just happened to like this body more. Of course, it's me, Dufus."

Elena made a pathetic noise in the back of her throat and then rushed downstairs, stopping a foot away from me. Her eyebrows furrowing together at the henley, drooping off of one shoulder and my high-waisted denim shorts (which I would be throwing away after today). "Oh my God, did he—"

Jeremy paled and even Aunt Jenna, who was not easy without an opinion, looked rather ill, apparently not having noticed my state of dress and I blinked several times. It took me a few seconds to link my state of dressing (or lack thereof) with their fears and shook my head: "He didn't. He— he just liked to irritate me."

"Irritate you?" Aunt Jenna demanded and ushered us all into the living room, before muttering something about drinks and a snack and hurried back to the hallway again.

"Did he really not?" Elena asked, fingering my shoulder with a frown. "What do you mean, irritate?"

"Well, yeah— Listen, he didn't sexually harass me, never touched me like that, never compelled me to do anything like that, he just enjoyed pushing my buttons on little things, and well, I pushed back. I've been living off of his wardrobe for the last few weeks."

"And the shorts?" Jeremy asked, seemingly more amused now than worried for my virtue.

"I looked ridiculous in male kaki's," I admitted and he laughed. Jenna came inside, holding a bowl of potato chips, which she rapidly started to eat, and dropped a glass of dark red lemonade in front of me. "Are you all right, Aunt Jenna?" I asked carefully.

"Brilliant." She retorted sarcastically and scooped up a handful of her chips. "I find out my niece and nephew's boy- and girlfriend are vampires. That the baddest vampire of them all is after Elena and that Rick's girlfriend— wife, whatever, has been alive all this time and then, when I finally start to get used to it, my wayward youngest niece, who I thought was staying over with Tyler because she was upset, is a witch and is being held hostage by that same baddest vampire of them all. I'm doing absolutely fantastic…"

"I see, you're great." I happily retorted and turned to Elena. She was perched at the edge of the coffee table the furthest away from me and I realized why she was looking at me that way. "You can't seriously be angry that I didn't tell you?"

"Why didn't you?" She accused softly and I gritted my teeth together.

"I really do not wish to deal with your hypocrisy today." I snapped and crossed my arms over my chest. "I didn't tell you because you never told me about your vampire boyfriend. Not even after you sent his older brother after me to see what I knew."

"I—"

"No, Elena!" I interrupted her easily. "I get that nothing has been easy for you the last few months, but things haven't even easy for the rest of us either. Also, understand that I was safer not being in the spotlight. Besides, I am not the greatest magician alive either."

"You saved me." Elena finally breathed out.

"Of course, I did." I shrugged pathetically.

"You were right under Klaus' nose and you saved me."

"What else did you think I was going to do?" I told her, after a few seconds of silence. She was blinking profusely and I wondered why she was so upset someone would want to help me. "Really, what is wrong?"

"Luca died because of the spell."

My blood froze in my veins and I gaped at her wide-eyed. "What?"

"Bonnie— Bonnie says it's because you were the stronger one. That it was your power fueling— and that when the spell started, he couldn't hold it."

"You mean I killed him?" I whispered horrified. I didn't panic this time. It almost felt as if my magic only finished the job it had started all those weeks ago. I wondered if it was just the shock, holding off the backlash of emotions that should have assaulted me after learning about Luca.

"No," Elena denied vehemently, "No, I killed him. I'm the reason why Stefan had to sacrifice himself for Damon— The reason why Klaus came to Mystic Falls— It's all my fault."

"None of this is anymore your fault than it is Samantha's, Elena." Aunt Jenna said patiently, munching happily on more potato chips and I felt slightly amused when she snatched the bowl away when Jeremy reached for some as well.

It made everything seem like it used to be and I could almost pretend my mother sitting on the kitchen table, glass wine in her hand while dad cooked us lasagne, which was their favorite dish on family night and I felt only more strengthened in that belief when Uncle John arrived, stepping into the house with a dreary expression. An expression that brightened when he noticed we were all there and even Aunt Jenna, who always glared and huffed when he appeared, was in a good enough mood to keep the game of '_who-can-come-up-with-the-worst-insult_' to a minimum.

We ordered pizza that night and when I'd made my way up to my bedroom, already rubbing my hands at the prospect of sleeping in my own bed tonight, I noticed Elena following me. I let her into my room without a word, locking the door behind her, and went through the process of gathering my favorite pair of pajamas. Elena sat down, cross-legged, on the middle of my bed. "I'm glad you know now."

"You are?" I asked slowly, pulling the henley over my head. Dropping it over the back of my desk chair, I turned towards her.

"Yes, besides Bonnie and Caroline, I had no one to talk to," she admitted softly and I dropped my denim shorts in the trashcan, before flopping beside her, nesting myself against the pillows and my headboard.

"But we never really talked much, did we?"

"We talked!" She decided and I realized what she meant. When she was dating Matt she used to discuss every little problem they would run into— or every little problem she thought I would know what to do with and furrowed my eyebrows.

"So, you want to talk about Stefan?" I summarized and she looked at me slyly, but also sad and I truly missed the days she would date Matt. The announcement that they'd started dating, surprised no one. If only, most of our family thought it took them long enough as Matt was practically already part of the family. For as long I could remember he'd been part of thanksgiving, Christmas and even the occasional summer vacation the Gilberts always enjoyed at the lake house uphill. The lake house was my favorite place on earth, where we could swim in the lake and explore the forest when we were children. Where I would wander away when I was old enough, with Jeremy in tow and gathered berries and wild mushrooms in my shirt (which I was _never_ allowed to eat). Matt would come with us, always more of Elena's friend (with who he had shared a crib and a playpen at our home). Sometimes Vicky would come too, who would rather accompany me and Jeremy than watch the sickening process of her brother salivating over Elena and would talk all about boys while I dared her to climb trees and told Jeremy to catch us if we fell (we never did).

I was the first to know that evening when we were twelve and all staying at the lake house, that Elena thought Matt liked her. Of course, I had already known that, but for Elena to try and talk to me was surprising. I had not realized how much she'd come to enjoy talking to me. Not really—

"So Stefan?" I tried. She shrugged.

"He gave himself up to Klaus," she whispered and I sucked my lower lip between my teeth. That comment made just as much sense as the last one and I frowned.

"I don't understand."

"Weren't you there?"

"Probably," I admitted, "but I was kinda out of it after doing that spell. Did Luca really die?"

"Bonnie thinks so," Elena whispered and I nodded in understanding. Her face told me they had indeed been dating indeed. "Anyway, Damon got bitten by Tyler."

I stiffened then, finally understanding what Klaus had meant with '_he's already dead,_' and pursed my lips.

"You really do know about everything, don't you?"

"You should try hiding your diary better," I responded and Elena mumbled something about privacy and the lack thereof with younger siblings before continuing with her story. She told me how Klaus had brought her to Steven's quarry, keeping her, Jules the werewolf, and the cop-turned-vampire Jason Burke imprisoned in rings of fire. She told me, stuttering over several words and sentences how she had to watch how Klaus ripped Jules' heart out and staked the rookie cop before drinking her dry and how hazy she'd felt. How bad she still felt by the deaths of both Jules and Jason Burke and I caught her hand, as she slapped her leg repeatedly.

"Jason wasn't your fault. If it was someone's fault it was more mine than yours. He took him because I begged him not to take Jenna."

"What?" Elena whispered.

"He wanted to take Jenna— Elena, nothing about this is your fault. Or mine or even Elijah's— This was all Klaus." I returned and although Elena didn't look like she believed me she told me about Stefan, having gone with Klaus. How Klaus' blood was the cure against a werewolf bite and how she kissed Damon just before Katherine arrived in his bedroom, holding a little bottle with Klaus' blood.

"Damon promised me to try and find him, but—"

"He's reluctant because you're supposed to be dead." I finished and she nodded wearily. "He's kinda right, you know."

"You could do a locator spell?"

"I could, but a locator spell only really works on the living." I slowly explained and she averted her eyes. "I'm sure there are other ways to find him. I'm sure I can help you in different ways."

She smiled placidly at that and the following month, I did my best to keep my word.

Sheriff Forbes upped her game as well, providing us with leads and Elena remained hopeful, even when Caroline found something else to worry about and started the preparations for Elena's 18th birthday instead.

* * *

June the 22nd fell on a Wednesday and when I returned home, a car full of snacks and drinks, Alaric's car was in the driveway. Alaric being there wasn't exactly surprising. When he was not helping Elena and Damon look for Stefan, he was often trying to talk to Jenna, and I followed the low murmur of voices coming from the living room. When I pushed open the door, not sure what she was expecting to find, both he and Aunt Jenna flinched, sitting on opposite sides of the couch. He was dressed rather impeccably in khaki pants and a button-down, so differently from his usual get-up, but his face was stern, as was Jenna's.

"Erm, sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt, I was just wondering if Elena told you what time she would be going to the Boarding House?"

"Around eighth-ish?" Aunt Jenna answered questingly and I rolled my eyes before going upstairs and changing. It being five o'clock I had at least another hour left before Tyler would come and pick me up and I thought I had to dress in something else than my usual denim shorts, t-shirt and Allstars, and riffled through my clothes until I found a pretty lime green summer dress, that must have been Elena's before. And when I was satisfied with my hair, leaving it hanging loose, now reaching past my shoulders and resting just above my shoulder-blades, Tyler showed up on our porch. He looked sharp, dressed in his neatest pair of denim pants, a blue blouse and hands tucked into the pockets of his leather jacket, smirking in a way that used to lead us to a variety of trouble when we were little.

"Hi, Ty," I grinned and led him inside to the shopping bags full of bottles of cola, seven large bags of chips and all kind of other snacks.

"No alcohol?"

"Damon has enough liquor to start a liquor shop, it was the only thing I didn't need to buy." I responded and helped him load his car. When I returned for my leather jacket, going well with the pretty green dress, Aunt Jenna was standing in the doorway, offering it to me. "Why again, are you not dating him?" She asked just as Alaric stormed past us, looking so murderous even Tyler jumped aside to let the angry History teacher pass.

I laughed dryly, straightening my lime green dress and stepped out onto the porch: "We're best friends. Like you and Mason?"

"Right, Mason." Jenna agreed. "He probably would have been a better boyfriend than the idiots I normally attract."

"Okay?"

"See you tonight!" And with that she slammed the door behind her and I shook my head. While my family had expected Matt and Elena to give it a shot, so had my family expected me and Tyler to date. It wasn't surprising and we had considered it for a while. I'd considered giving it a shot, because so many called us compatible and cute together and once, after a football game in 8th grade, Tyler had beckoned me to follow him under the bleachers. He'd kept there a hidden stash of candy-bars and one of his father's bottles of scotch (which back then I wasn't yet interested in) and pressed his mouth firmly against mine for several seconds, before pulling back frowning (telling me kissing was weird and we moved back to the field).

"Did she ask you why we're not dating?"

"Yeah," I agreed, before dryly muttering. "If you want a spectacle you should try kissing me now." And pointed at the living room window, where Aunt Jenna was not-so-subtle staring at us. Tyler barked out a laugh and an amused look crossed his dark features before he started the car and drove out of the street. I fidgeted with the hem of my dress, wriggling my toes in my open sandals.

"Perhaps we should pretend we are dating tonight." He suddenly told me and I almost hit my head against the window. I'd been paying little attention to the driving and as Tyler sped up, I stared at him with wide eyes.

"Why?"

He flashed me a grin, the same he'd flashed me when I'd opened the door earlier that afternoon and I felt dread settle low in my stomach. "Caroline would shiver in jealousy."

"Oh my God, Ty!"

"Please!" He pouted and I stared at him as if he'd grown a second head.

"You're kidding, right?" I asked. "Tell me you're kidding!"

"I would do it for you!"

"Yeah," I drawled, "But I wouldn't ask that of you, you imbecile."

"Just for tonight!"

"Was there no one else?"

"Sophie wanted to come with me." He explained and I snorted.

"Slutty Sophie?"

"Yeah, that was what Caroline said too." He admitted. "You would be worse. She would view you as competition. Then at least I know for sure she's into me or not."

"And if she's not?"

"Then at least I'd know. I promise I won't try and jump you." He said as he turned the corner and pulled up to the boarding house, parking his car in front of the lofty garage. Circling the car and opening the door for me, he held out his hand for me to take and pulled me out of the car. The muggy summer heat was oppressing and part of me wanted nothing more than to climb back into the car again, but Tyler was already leading me up the stairs to the front door, hand grasping mine firmly.

"You're pushing it, Tyler," I muttered softly as he wrapped his arm around my shoulders and used the knocker to announce his arrival. He grinned when Caroline's eyes widened slightly and brushed his lips against my cheek. It was going to be a long evening. Tyler and I helped set up while ignoring Caroline's curious glances (since Tyler kept leaning into me, tucking locks of hair behind my ears and telling me I looked beautiful), and around nine, the first guests started to trickle inside. The living room was cleared of all the furniture and transformed by pink and white ribbons and large festive colorful balloons.

We yelled and hooted in greeting when Elena descended down the stairs and within minutes, the music was blaring loudly. Tyler dragged me out on the dance floor, and we moved along on the music. I chatted with Audrey Tanner, Dana Pleck, and her boyfriend Chad Jensen while Tyler followed me around, truly acting like an overprotective boyfriend.

"Would you like something to drink, my Darling?" He asked pleasantly and Chad's eyes drifted from Tyler to me and back to Tyler again.

"Why, Honey, I'd love to."

"Right away, my Love" he quipped.

I rolled my eyes, and followed him across the room, accepting a cup of punch spiked with bourbon from Tyler as he briefly manned the refreshment table. "You're really pushing it!" I muttered but I did notice Caroline, holding onto a bottle of expensive bourbon and glaring at us. "But I think it's working."

Taking a sip of the bourbon-infused strawberry punch, I pursed my lips at him. "I'm not sure what you should do now, though—"

"Let's dance again!" He grinned and yanked me to the middle of the room. I did like to dance like this, at least, no longer fifteen and a kid, I lifted my arms to the ceiling and moved along to the music. From my peripheral vision, I noticed Caroline's face morphing in several angry expression, before settling on. Oh, she was into him all right.

"If you want to make a move, you should do it now." I told him, my arms wrapped around his shoulders and my forehead leaning against his collarbone. "She's looking at you as if she would like nothing than to rip my innards out."

"Right," he agreed just as Caroline crossed the room and harshly bumped into Tyler's shoulder, almost sending me flailing over the floor and I pushed him after her.

"Make me proud."

He grinned and stormed after the furious blonde. Chad and Dana came up beside me, looking at me with curious expressions: "So— that was weird right?" Chad asked.

"Well," I shrugged, "hasn't Tyler always been weird?"

"Duly noted," Dana grinned and I was quite sure she knew what we'd been up to. Waggling my fingers at them, I crossed the room and took another sip from my drink.

"Them dating would be even weirder though," Chad remarked.

"Mystic Falls is weird anyway." I shrugged and They nodded in quiet agreement.

* * *

It was a few minutes after midnight by the time I made my way outside. Alaric and Damon were seated on one of the low cinderblock walls around the flowerbeds. They were sharing a bottle of bourbon and I neared with a small smile on my lips.

"I'm the chaperone teacher from hell." I heard Alaric say when I came close enough.

"Are you?" I asked dryly and stepped up next to Damon, smiling mischievously. "If it would make you feel better, you could join them."

"I see you lost your date?" Damon asked sweetly and I chuffed my nose, giving him a slight tingle, a memory of a headache.

"Everything is going just the way it should go."

"You tried to get Barbie-Vampire jealous." He agreed and I nodded. From the dance floor, Tyler and Caroline were busy making out and Alaric said something to me this time, but the noise from the speakers was deafening, drowning out his words. I didn't have the time to ask him to repeat that as he stormed away and I peered at Damon.

"So how is the search for Stefan going?"

"Didn't Elena tell you?" He asked irritably and I rolled my eyes.

"I'm not Elena," I retorted. "I don't believe in fairytales like she does, Damon. I know you've been lying to her."

"God, you're worse than the Judgy witch."

"Awe, my feelings are hurt now." I retorted and finished my strawberry punch. "But seriously, do you have any leads? I promised Elena to help you look! Lying to me isn't going to help you!"

"Elena can't handle it." He snapped and I laughed hollowly.

"Why because Stefan is doing the blood junkie thing?" I asked and his eyes widened. "Yeah, I know how to turn on a computer and get answers from Liz Forbes, so, yeah, I know what's going on and the fact you're not telling Elena, suggests it's Stefan doing the killing. Not Klaus."

"You can't tell her that."

"Don't you think I know that you imbecile?" I snarled back and he grabbed my arm, yanking me away, away from the party, away from the crowd. His hand curled so tightly around my wrist I knew the skin beneath his fingers would bloom blue and purple in a few hours and when he stopped at the edge of the grass field he let go of me as if burned. The music of the party was faint but still drifting towards me. The air was still hot and festering and I toyed with the strap of my dress, knowing, I should have stayed inside, dancing and laughing with my friends — Elena's birthday always fell at the beginning of the summer holidays, concluding a busy year of schooling — instead of arguing with a vampire serial killer.

"Listen, baby Witch," he snapped, his expression dark, and his blue eyes glinting in the dim starlight. I felt my eyes narrow. 'Baby witch' wasn't at all surprising when Bonnie was older than I was, but it was not very creative either. "Elena is on the verge of breaking—"

"Don't you think I know that?" I whispered and looked up at the sky, seeing the stars in the clear night shining down on me, "but at least let her know you're following the leads she provides. This is my sister we're talking about. She'll keep on pestering you if you don't— Has Stefan really lost it?"

"He wasn't called the ripper of Montreal for nothing."

I had no idea he had been called that and I pressed my lips together. I was unsure how Stefan Salvatore, who I'd never really liked or given a chance (if I was honest), had turned into a monster in a bit more than four weeks and killed so many people. Because that was the problem, wasn't it? Stefan on blood was like a junkie on crack. You didn't easily get back from that. "But you drink blood— Human blood I mean and you can control it."

"No secrets to beheld with you, hm?"

"Don't be sarcastic, please." I retorted crossing my arms over my chest and settled down on the wooden fence, looping my arms around my knees. He pursed his lips in irritation. I probably wasn't his favorite person in the world either. "I—"

"Yes, I can control it. Stefan on the other hand can't." He answered flatly and I opened my mouth to counter him with some pure sarcasm when he raised his hand, interrupting me easily, as he fished his buzzing cellphone out of his jacket. "Afraid, I have to go. Need to pick up Andy. Goodbye Witchy Gilbert."

He waved at me when he went, and I rubbed my fingers in circles around my temples. Raking my fingers through my hair, pushing thick, tousled locks behind my ears, I circled back to the house, irritated. I would have to talk to him at a later moment…

_To be continued…_

* * *

**A/N: An _easy_ chapter for a change. Got to love her and Tyler's weird friendship.^^ And of course, something wicked comes this way!**


End file.
